Trials and Tribulations
by mel-v
Summary: B'Elanna and Chakotay have been taken hostage after witnessing a political murder, and are now being transported to a slave labor camp. Will they be able to help each other live through this new trial and tribulation? Chapter 4 is now up. Reviews helpful.
1. Default Chapter

1337 ZULU

Engineering Deck

B'Elanna couldn't believe it. How in the world would she explain to the Captain that the fuel coils were burning out since that encounter with the Janyius, the race of aliens who had thought that Voyager was trying to take the precious metals from their planet while all they were doing was answering a distress call a boy had accidentally sent. Apparently the coils had been damaged in that incident, but she hadn't thought that it was serious. She had been wrong, and now she was going to have to answer to the Captain.

B'Elanna blew out her breath, and stood up. She would just have to explain to the Captain that the other repairs had been more serious, and she had thought the coils could have waited. All she had to do now was try to find a way to replace them. That was one of the myriads of problems about being in the Delta Quadrant. There was no port you could go to and have normally replaceable parts be installed in the ship. Here, nothing was replaceable. You had to salvage everything, and sometimes that wasn't even good enough. B'Elanna looked glanced at her watch. "Great", she muttered. She had 15 minutes to go and take a shower, eat dinner, and then be present at the senior staff meeting. She considered her options: it would take her approximately 4 minutes to get to her quarters, another 5 to take a shower, and then 3 more to reach the briefing room. She could just wait to eat dinner afterwards, even though she didn't think that would be possible. Hell, even meals were sometimes irreplaceable.

1400 ZULU

Staff Meeting

Janeway looked at every one of her senior officers, and she knew she couldn't have asked for a better crew. The whole group of them all had different backgrounds and talents, but they always managed to work well with each other. While she knew that Tom and Chakotay weren't exactly the best of friends, they had overcome numerous differences just to be able to work together. The one thing that she had thought that had helped them resolve their animosity was B'Elanna. Chakotay and B'Elanna were extremely close, ever since they had been in the maquis together. They both knew each other's weaknesses and strengths, moods and memories. Apparently Tom knew of this, and thus came to the conclusion that if he wanted to get involved with B'Elanna, he'd have to get to know her best friend. When B'Elanna made the decision to get to know Tom better, at first Chakotay thought that the Doctor had messed with her Klingon physiology. But when he realized that she was serious about it, and even more shocking that Tom was too, he knew that he had to accept his friend's decision. While they still sometimes have disagreemants, there is also the unspoken truce regarding B'Elanna.

"Ok guys, time for progress reports", the Captain said, with just a little bit of challenge in her voice. "Tuvok, you first".

Tuvok nodded his head in acknowledgment, and then glanced at his PADD. "Captain, most of the ship's systems are performing adequately, but I have noticed a deficiency in warp speed. I believe that Engineering is experiencing a problem, and I took the liberty to try to detect the malfunction. I have come to the conclusion that either the rejectors are not balanced, or the fuel coils are not working properly".

At that instance, every pair of eyes turned to B'Elanna and stared. Throughout all of Tuvok's report, she had been tapping the arm rest, but now she had a death grip on it, her knuckles white, and a grimace on her face. She looked up at the Captain, and saw her lift her eyebrows in question. B'Elanna shifted in her chair and cleared her throat. "Umm, yes, we do have a problem with the fuel coils. I believe that they were damaged in that squeamish we had with the Janyius 4 days ago. I didn't think the problem was so severe, so I went ahead and did other repairs that I thought were more urgent, and not until today have I realized that the damage is much more substantial than what I had first assumed".

Silence. B'Elanna looked up at Janeway, and knew right there that the Captain was not impressed. And could she blame her? She was the Chief of Engineering, and now the Captain probably thought that she ran a 3 ring circus instead of a Starfleet regulated Engineering department. Man, had she screwed up this time. "Lieutenant, I don't understand. Didn't you say in your report that everything was taken care of, and that repairs would be completed within 3 days?"

"Yes, Captain, I did. But like I said, I just didn't realize the extent of the problem". B'Elanna took a deep breath before looking at Janeway. The Captain stared hard at her for a moment longer, and then nodded. "Understood. How long will it take to repair?"

"That's the problem", B'Elanna began, thinking of her earlier thoughts of the inconveniencies of this quadrant. "We'll need to completely replace the coils. I'm estimating that we have another 10 days before they go completely out. Till then, we can manage up to warp 6 without any problems".

"Ok. Any suggestions as to how to resolve this?" the Captain asked.

Seven looked up at her, and then at B'Elanna. One of the things that totally confused her about the half Klingon was her rather hostile attitude toward people when she herself couldn't fix a problem while others could. This attitude, according to Seven, was completely inefficient when trying to solve problems. This, Seven thought, was probably why she got along with the Doctor better than with any human, half or not. "Captain", Seven said," in my recent scanning in Astrometrics, I have detected an inhabited planet that has comparable, but not as advanced, technology as Starfleet. We can get there in 3 days if we go to warp 6, as Lt. Torres has advised".

The Captain thought for a moment. "Good. We'll immediately set the course for this planet. Now, for the rest of the reports. Doctor?" the Captain asked. While the Doctor went on about the new slide show he was preparing that was, by the way, beneficial to every crewmember, and therefore everyone should be required to attend, B'Elanna thought about this new planet they would try to negotiate with. She knew that she should be in charge of the team to acquire the coils, but for some odd reason she had a bad feeling about this. The hairs on the back of her neck were actually prickling. 'Probably because of lack of food', she tried to assure herself. But still...   
  
"Anyone else?" the Captain asked? Everyone shook their heads, already thinking about this new planet they would visit, if all goes well, in 3 days. "Very well. Dismissed. Lt Torres, please stay for a moment."

B'Elanna nodded her head, and then looked at Tom. He gave her an encouraging smile, his eyes full with sympathy, and then walked out behind Neelix. After everyone had exited the room, Janeway turned from the window and walked up to B'Elanna. She didn't want to be too hard on the Lt, but she had to make it clear that she would have to make up for this incident. "Lt, I have never regretted my decision to make you Chief of Engineering, and I hope I never will. However, I want you to know that mistakes like this can be avoided, and must be avoided at all costs". She paused and looked at the younger woman. "I'm going to put you in charge of finding new warp coils, attaining them, and installing them. Do you think you can do this, Lt?" she asked, with a glint of challenge in her eye.

B'Elanna let out a breath she wasn't aware of holding. She knew that she could do this. In fact, she had done it numerous times when she was with the maquis. "Yes, Captain, I can. I won't let you down".

Janeway smiled. She had every ounce of confidence in her Chief of Engineering. In fact, one other person who had experience in this kind of thing would probably be more than willing to help out. Janeway looked at B'Elanna, and gave her one of her most winning smiles. "And I know just the person who would love to help you".

1545 ZULU

Deck 5

Neelix was ecstatic. He had always wanted to help with anything on Voyager, but never before has one of his assignments been so challenging. To go to a planet he has never been to, negotiate by using his well honed skills he had acquired in his many years as, what he liked to call, a professional barterer, and to top it all off, to actually work alongside B'Elanna. Neelix smiled gleefully to himself again, thinking that maybe he would celebrate this by serving the crew his new recipe of zucchini and blood pie casserole. He was sure it would be a big hit with everyone, including B'Elanna.   
  
Neelix stopped for a moment. B'Elanna. He just realized then that on this mission he could prove to her that he could, in fact, be just as tough and willing as Chakotay or Tuvok. Yes, he thought, he could show her his courage, and impress her with his knowledge of things such as negotiating and being a middleman. Why, then maybe she would talk to other crew members about his prowess in the field, and his expertise in getting what was needed, no matter the cost.  
  
Neelix surged forward with a new purpose, surprising more than a few Ensigns when they saw the small man all but waddle to the Mess Hall.

1900 ZULU

Lt. Torres' Quarters  
B'Elanna all but threw herself on her bed. She was exhausted. After the staff meeting, she had went back to Engineering for 4 more hours, trying to squeeze as much power from a couple of power grids that were practically insisting that it was due time for them to retire. After that wrestling match, she had went to the Mess Hall to talk with Neelix about the mission and what it would curtail, and maybe even get something to eat. When she had gotten there, Neelix practically shoved a plate full of something he was trying to pass off as food. When she had smelled it, she politely refused and said that she was actually looking forward to some pancakes with maple syrup. Neelix had been happy to oblige. But right when she thought that she could start eating in peace, Neelix rushed over to her table, dropped down on the opposite chair, and started telling her different stories about his salvaging ship and his many excursions on it. A couple of times she had had the almost uncontrollable urge to laugh when he would shamelessly dramatize his acts of heroism, but she knew that he would be truly hurt, so she oohed and awed at all the right times. When she finally got away, she went right to her quarters, and there she was, sprawled on her bed.  
  
She wasn't at all upset about Neelix coming with her. In fact, she was actually looking forward to it. This would be the perfect time to to understand him better. She sometimes felt bad because she didn't think that she was particularly nice to him sometimes, while he was always trying to help her out and lift her spirits up. Well, all that could change within the next week or so, she thought. But then a sobering thought barged in. Nothing could go wrong with this mission. Nothing. She had to prove herself to the Captain that she was very capable in all matters. She would just have to banish those thoughts of uneasiness she had had earlier, grab the bull by the horns, and get the job done. Yes, she thought, this would all have to go perfectly, and she couldn't screw it up in any way, shape or form. While she would still be nice to Neelix and make sure he didn't feel that he was in the way when she was taking care of business, this would not be a bonding experience for either of them. They were to get the job done as quickly as possible, and she would have to tell him that. She knew that he liked to learn of other people's cultures and practices, but he would just have to wait this one out and wait for another time to satisfy that urge.  
  
Just as B'Elanna got up to take a shower, the chimer went off to notify her that someone wanted to see her. "Come in" she said halfheartedly, not really wanting to talk to anyone. When the doors slid open to reveal Tom Paris, she let out a breath and smiled. "Why hello, fly boy. What can I do for you at this late hour?" she asked as she walked over to the door.  
  
"Actually, I was wondering what you could do for me" Tom said as he rested his shoulder on the door frame. Every time he saw B'Elanna, he still couldn't believe his good fortune. She had helped him through so many hard times and had helped him accept and forgive himself for too many things to count. All an all, he thought, she was the greatest thing that had ever happened to him. And tonight he would make up for a fraction of all the things she had helped him with.  
  
"Well, if it has nothing to do with fuel coils or power grids, I'm more than happy to do anything to get my mind off of this whole mess with Engineering. Other than that, I'm game for anything. Whatcha wanna do? I wouldn't mind getting something to eat first because I'm starving" B'Elanna said, thinking of the 3 bites of pancakes she had before getting away from Neelix.

"It has to do with a very sandy surface next to a body of water that is most refreshing on a hot day that a holodeck can do a most impressive replication of", Tom said with a twinkle in his eye.  
  
"In that case, count me in. Just let me go my bikini real fast" she said over her shoulder. Just as she was to the door of her lavatory, Chakotay's voice came over the intercom. "Chakotay to Torres". B'Elanna looked over at Tom before she answered, "Torres here".

"Lt, you might want to get up to the Bridge in the next 5 minutes. We're discussing with the Blithians when would be a good time to set up an appointment to discuss the ship's repairs" Chakotay said, with an impatient note that B'Elanna hadn't missed. "Understood. Torres out". She walked over to Tom who was scowling at the speakers in the ceiling. "Why is it that whenever I want to do something fun, even when he doesn't even know I'm planning it, he always manages to ruin it?" he muttered as she put her arms around him.  
  
"I don't know. Maybe its some kind of radar that can sense trouble before it happens" she said with a smile. He looked down at her and rested his forehead on hers. "Well, I hope you have fun with all that appointment making, because I know I will at the scorching and lonely beach" he mumbled with a frown.

1935 ZULU

Bridge

Chakotay looked over at the turbolift as the doors opened to reveal B'Elanna. He was actually kind of worried about her lately, and when she came in with dark circles under her eyes, his worry was not at all calmed. He had noticed lately that she was working odd hours lately. Too many hours, he thought. As he motioned her over to him, he promised himslef he would have a talk with her and make sure everything was alright.

"Sorry it took so long", B'Elanna said as she rushed to Chakotay's side.

"Don't worry about that right now. We're waiting for the Council to get back to us with a date and time we can meet with them about the fuel coils." B'Elanna looked up at him, perplexed. Chakotay was usually a stickler when it came to punctuality, but here he practically threw promptness out the window. She shook her head, getting the thoughts out. He probably just had other things on his mind and didn't have time to admonish her. Maybe she should talk to him about what was going on lately. He was, after all, her best friend. She could just ask him-

"They're hailing us, Commander", Harry reported. B'Elanna looked over at him, embarrassed that she hadn't aknowledged him since she had come into the Bridge. She gave him a furtive wave just as a Blithian filled the screen.

"Commander, I hope you have not grown impatient with us. I'm sorry for the delay, but you'll be happy to know that we have decided that you and one other member of your crew can meet with a High Councilman tomorrow afternoon. Does that comply with your wishes?" The man smiled, hoping to be helpful. "You'll be meeting with a very distinguished member of the Council, High Councilman Noortvan. I'm sure that he can help you with everything you need. We will schedule a transport at 1400 tomorrow. Goodbye for now", the man said, cutting off any potential objections before he disconnected the link.

Chakotay looked down at B'Elanna, who still had her mouth hanging open, appalled at the abruptness of the discussion. "Well, I guess you and I are going to Blithia tomorrow, Lieutenant. Get a good night's rest, and meet me at the Mess Hall at 0900 to discuss everything", the Commander ordered.

B'Elanna nodded, standing to attention to ask to leave, when something just hit her. "Oh no, what about Neelix?"

Chakotay looked at her, puzzled, for a few moments before it dawned on him. "I forgot too", he said, with a pained expression on his face. "I guess I'll have to give him the bad news tonight before his shift is over". Chakotay winced again, not looking forward to talking to Neelix. Though he could be a bit annoying sometimes, he was always very sincere and helped out whenever he could.

B'Elanna cleared her throat and squared her shoulders. "Sir, permission to talk to Neelix about this? I feel that I should give him the bad news". B'Elanna smirked, adding, "Maybe he'll feel better if I eat some of the stuff he had made for dinner tonight. For some reason, he was particularly enthusiastic when he offered me a plateful. I think he's still under the impression that I like Klingon food".

Chakotay grinned, "Well, at least I'll know that you won't die because of the food, what with your cast iron stomach and all. But just think, you'll be doing it all in the name of compassion for humanity".

"Yes, I'll keep reminding myself that when I'm in Sick Bay, having the Doctor telling me that I should be more careful the next time I try to eat battery acid".

2200 ZULU

Mess Hall

B'Elanna cleared her throat before entering the Mess Hall. As of right now, she had no idea how she was going to tell Neelix. She walked through the doors, and was hit with the most dreadful smell. In fact, it almost smelled like-

"Blood Worm Pie, Lieutenant! Can you believe it? I never knew that Starfleet had this in its database, but when I was looking up the recipe for coconut crème pie, I stumbled across this. And what a coincidence that you just now walked through the doors!" Neelix exclaimed. He was quite pleased with the results, though it did leave a nasty odor that permeated the air. His eyes were actually tearing up from it, but he refused to show weakness in front of B'Elanna. He certainly didn't want to reveal to her how this, uh, cuisine disgusted him. Why, how embarrassing for B'Elanna to know that he was repulsed by this Klingon fare.

B'Elanna stared at the platter for a moment, pushing down the nausea. "Oh Neelix, you didn't. How very nice of you", she managed, before looking at him and smiling. "Actually, I just ate with Tom a little while ago. Maybe you can just store it till a rainy day", she said, with a weak laugh, making a mental note to get rid of the pie after Neelix went to his quarters. That wouldn't be considered a waste to the ship's resources, would it? If it was, the Captain would have her rear end, that is, after she would get a good laugh from it.

"Oh, I'll just put it in the fridge until you feel like having it, ok?", Neelix replied, heading toward the back of the Mess Hall, platter well in front of him.

B'Elanna sat down at one of the tables waiting for Neelix. How was she going to do this? Next time, she thought, just let her superiors do the squirming. She looked up to see Neelix coming out of the pantry, wiping his hands off. "Umm, actually, I was hoping to talk to you about the mission real fast", she said, shifting in her seat. "There's been a complication. And, well, I need to talk it over with you real fast", she finished lamely.

Neelix looked at her for a moment, worried. "Ok. Would you like any coffee first?"

"Oh, that's ok, but thank you." She cleared her throat, then gestured toward the chair opposite to her. Neelix dropped into it, wondering what was wrong. "Well, Chakotay and I have talked to the Blithians, and we've set up a time to meet with them. But they put down only one stipulation, and that was that Chakotay and one other crew member would accompany him to the planet. Seeing as how I'm Chief of Engineering, I've already been elected to be the one to go with the Commander." She glanced up, looking for any reaction.

Neelix tried to hide his disappointment, but did poorly. "Well, I can understand that. So, is there any other way I can help you with this mission? Perhaps I can look up the customs of this planet for you, if the Blithians would send us some files", he said, hoping she would say yes.

B'Elanna breathed a sigh of relief. She knew that Neelix was disappointed, but at least he wasn't mad. "You know, I haven't even thought of that. It's a wonderful idea. I'll talk to Chakotay, and we'll see if they'll oblige us, though I don't know why they wouldn't". B'Elanna was genuinely happy with the suggestion. Now not only would Neelix not feel left out, but he can help them to understand the way of life and traditions of the Blithians.

"Well, once you've talked to the Commander, you'll find me here in the Mess." Neelix got up, already excited about this new project. As he walked B'Elanna to the doors, he wondered where he kept his nice navy blue PADD Kess had given to him. It would be nice to do his research on that particular one. Not only did it bring back good memories, but it also was much easier to find than your ordinary PADD.

B'Elanna turned to Neelix when they reached the doors and touched his arm. "Thanks for understanding and not getting upset", she said. "I'm sure there will be another time when we can go on an away mission together. And probably something that's not as hectic as this one", she said as she walked out the doors backwards.

Neelix smiled, touched. "Hey, nothing gets me mad or upset B'Elanna, unless someone messes with my kitchen. Then we might have a slight problem", he chuckled, not noticing the look of fret passing over the Lieutenant's as she thought about the nasty platter in the refrigerator, just waiting to be thrown away.

0920 ZULU

Mess Hall

"So how did our favorite Talaxian take the news?", Chakotay inquired.

B'Elanna looked up from her pancakes and glanced to her right where Neelix was serving breakfast to a couple of Ensigns. He was very cordial to her and Chakotay this morning when they came in to have their meeting and grab a bite to eat. In fact, if she hadn't known better, she would have bet that he was still going on the away mission, what with all his animated chatter with everyone about the intricate system the Blithians had for courtship, and don't even get him started on the Blithians cuisine. Apparently he was content with examining the Blithians culture, and she was truly happy that he was satisfied with it. She was also thankful to the Blithians for allowing them the information of their society.

"He was very understanding. You know, I'm just happy that he still has something to do with this mission." B'Elanna took another bite of her pancakes, and then pushed the plate away.

"Well, lets get started on our meeting, shall we?", Chakotay suggested. "We have a lot to cover, and not too much time to do it. First off, I have a feeling that if High Councilman Noortvan does agree to let us search for the fuel coils, we'll have to do it ourselves, with no help from him. I was reading a news report from Blithia, and it looks like there's a lot of political satire going on. Frankly, I'm surprised that we're meeting with someone so high up. I'm kind of uneasy about it, actually. I've been thinking that maybe this Noortvan character won't be so happy for having to deal with such a menial task that customs could have dealt with." Chakotay took a sip of his coffee, and winced. Why does coffee get cold so fast? "Anyway, we need to step lightly, and stick together throughout this whole thing. Agreed?"

B'Elanna nodded her head. So maybe she wasn't wrong when she got uneasy about this mission. At least Chakotay and her had the same feelings about it. "I totally agree. I've already found out that the fuel coils can be replaced by a part called power manifolds. From what I understand, its relatively easy to get them on Blithia, so hopefully it won't take too long to get this over and done with." B'Elanna tapped her foot, thinking. Maybe it would be best to go to a dealer, and pay cold cash for it. The Captain had said that she wanted to try to trade something for the parts, but B'Elanna didn't know if that would pan out.

Chakotay cleared his throat. "Well, lets get started. Go ahead and get everything you need together to stay for a night. The Blithians sent over a message that they would like us to enjoy their hospitality, so be prepared for just about anything. And you might want to talk to Neelix and see if he knows how we should repay them for their kindness. And any bloopers we might want to avoid while eating there." Chakotay stood up and turned around, then hesitated. He turned back to B'Elanna, who was still seated. "I just don't have a good feeling about this B'Elanna. There's too many unanswered questions about the whole meeting arrangement itself, and then we have to deal with what they say about our problem. It just doesn't add up. Listen, I really did mean it that we need to stick closely together, ok?", Chakotay said, his forehead creased with worry.

B'Elanna stood up. "I agree with you. I was uneasy about this mission from the get-go, and I don't know why. Its like a sixth sense or something." She sighed, pushing her hair away from her forehead. "I guess its just you and me, maquis."


	2. Chapter 2

1445 ZULU  
  
Meeting Room  
  
B'Elanna tapped her fingers on the table. Where in the world were they? She glanced at a clock on the wall. 2:45. Great, so now they've been here for 45 minutes without any explanation as to why this meeting was starting late, and they would probably be here for another 45 before someone had the decency to check up on them.   
  
"I wouldn't be surprised if this Noortvan character is making us wait. Like we agreed on this morning, he's probably upset that he was assigned this task", Chakotay stated. He knew exactly what B'Elanna was thinking at the moment, and he didn't want her to still be aggravated when their welcoming party would arrive. God knows what she would say to them when they would walk through the door.  
  
B'Elanna nodded, refusing to look at Chakotay. She hated it when people made her wait. Fine, just say if you're gonna be late, and that would be ok. But to act like their time was more important than hers and Chakotay's….She narrowed her eyes, planning on what to say when she would give these belated knuckleheads a piece of her mind.  
  
The door slid open to reveal an older man, wiry and short in stature. Beside him was a younger, plumper( B'Elanna smiled when she thought of that choice of word) man with a small rectangular object in his hands, which appeared to be a PADD of some sort.  
  
Chakotay and B'Elanna stood up, facing toward the men. "Oh, please do sit down. I'm sorry for the wait. No one told me I had an appointment until five minutes ago", the older man said, as he practically fluttered into the room. He walked over to B'Elanna and Chakotay, and executed a fast, but efficient, bow that any Nazi officer would have envied. "I'm High Council Member Nootvan, and this is my assistant, Bhun", he said as he pointed toward the tubby man. "Please, sit down. May I offer you any refreshments? You two must be very thirsty. Bhun, bring some tea for our guests", he said, hardly glancing behind him. The younger man glared at Noortvan's back before skulking into the hallway.  
  
"Now, where should we start? You two are looking for parts for your ship? Well, that can be easily remedied. You have my complete cooperation. Please realize that I won't be able to personally help you with this, but Bhun would be more that happy to assist you", the High Council Member said with a gracious smile.  
  
Chakotay glanced at B'Elanna, who returned the glimpse. He had the feeling that Bhun would have something to say about his happiness to assist. "Yes, well, I've been reading up on the current events of your planet, and I saw that you're running for the highest chair on the Council. So I can understand why you would be too busy to help the Lieutenant and I, and we certainly don't want to be a bother." Chakotay cleared his throat, trying to find the words to say what he wanted. "Are you sure that Bhun wouldn't mind assisting us? I'm sure that if you referred us to someone who sold the parts we need, we can take it from there."  
  
Noortvan was silent for a moment. "Yes, I can see where you're coming from. And it is true, I am quite busy with other matters involving Blithia, so my time is hard to come by. Perhaps we can discuss this over the Late Meal, or your term for it, dinner. How does 8 o'clock sound to you? I'll have Bhun show you to your rooms for the night, where you can freshen up. Yes?", Noortvan questioned, pleased that he had all the plans in order.   
  
Chakotay looked at B'Elanna, who shrugged her approval. "Thank you, High Council Member. We'll be looking forward to it." Chakotay held out his hand to Noortvan, who hesitated, then exclaimed, "Oh, yes, the handshake! I tried to read about your practices, and a handshake is very appropriate at this time, yes?", he asked as he pumped Chakotay's hand, then turned and took the hand of a surprised B'Elanna Torres, and shook enthusiastically. "Bhun should be here any moment with the tea. It always takes him so long, I'm sure he gets distracted by the pastries they make for the Late Meal."  
  
B'Elanna smiled. She liked this man, though he was a bit odd. "I look forward to tonight, High Council Member", she said.   
  
"Oh, and me too. It's a rare occasion when I get to dine with a beautiful lady. My dear Yetnia passed away 4 cycles ago, and I still miss her. In fact", he said with a mischievous tone, "I still catch myself looking behind my back when I talk to a pretty lady, expecting to see an enraged Yetnia with a club." He laughed, then added in a whisper, "But I'm sure you would be able to defend yourself, and me, too."  
  
B'Elanna smiled, not being able to help herself. With that, Noortvan waived goodbye and exited the room. Still smiling, B'Elanna turned around to face Chakotay, who raised an eyebrow.   
  
"Well, I wouldn't have figured him to be a flirt", he said with a smile. "Just behave yourself tonight, B'Elanna. I don't want a political scandal on my hands", he laughed.  
  
She laughed. "Yes, well, I guess I'll just have to restrain myself, though it will be a trial."  
  
Just then, Bhun walked into the room with a tray. He stopped when he saw only the Commander and Lieutenant. "Did High Council Member Noortvan leave? Well, it figures. So what am I suppose to do with you two?" he grumbled.  
  
B'Elanna stiffened, angry that this upstart would be so disrespectful. Chakotay noticed this, and put a hand on her arm, hoping to calm her. "He asked that you show us to our rooms", Chakotay coldly said.  
  
Bhun shrugged, not caring what the Commander thought. "Fine. Follow me", he said as he exited the room.   
  
Chakotay and B'Elanna looked at each other. "Remember what I said, Lieutenant. I don't want any kind of trouble here, no matter if its deserved or not", Chakotay said, knowing what was going through her head.   
  
"Understood." She followed after the Commander, hoping that Bhun would choke on the pastry he had hidden in his pocket.  
  
1600  
  
Guest Quarters  
  
B'Elanna tossed the tourist pamplet she had been looking at on the coffee table. After taking a 30 minute nap, she had washed her face and brushed her teeth, hoping the time would pass by quickly. It hadn't.  
  
She stood up and walked over to the bed and made it. After that 30 second chore was done, she sat down in the chair again. She glanced at the pamplet again, then stood up. Hopefully Chakotay was just as bored as she was and would agree to go and visit some of the tourist attractions that were downstairs in the lobby. She opened the door to her suite, quickly looking both ways. She knew that Chakotay's was just down the hallway, but didn't know which of the 2 doors was it.   
  
She stepped out of her room and quietly closed the door behind her, walking toward the back of the hall. She gave each door a momentary look, then decided to go with the one on her side of the hall. Stepping toward it, she lightly tapped the chimer, hoping that she had chosen the right one. She waited a few moments, and just when she was sure she had the wrong door and at any moment an angry Blithian would come storming from the door, she heard a familiar voice. "Enter."  
  
The doors slid open, she stepped through them, eager to step out of the barren hallway.  
  
Chakotay stood up from the chair and walked toward her. "Are you as antsy as I am?", he asked.  
  
She gave him a smile. "Actually, I was quite content in my room, but decided I had better come rescue you from tedium. And before you get down on your knees to thank me, I already have something in mind for you to do to make up for my unselfish act", she declared in her most arrogant tone.  
  
Chakotay rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Lets just get out of here for a while."  
  
She smirked. "Yes, lets."  
  
1635 ZULU  
  
Lobby  
  
B'Elanna had never seen anything like it. She held it up, to see if there was a price on the bottom. After a quick gasp and almost dropping the figurine, she placed in down with the utmost care, careful not to break it for fear of becoming a slave to the clerk, because there was no way in high heaven she could afford this piece.  
  
She walked over to another shop, this one catering to tools and a select display of weapons. She gave the tools a cursory glance, then walked over to the glassed in shelf of weapons. She almost turned away after a few moments before something caught her eye. She bent down, squinting her eyes.   
  
"Hmm. It looks like a lighter", she said to herself.  
  
"May I help you?", a voice asked from behind her.  
  
B'Elanna started, then caught herself. Why was she so jumpy? Just clamp it down, Torres, she told herself.  
  
"Umm, I was actually looking at one of those small silver things on the third shelf", she said. "What exactly are they?".  
  
The man smiled, as if he was let in on a joke, while she was still trying to understand it. "Those are what we call cabzis", he said patiently, as if speaking to a child. B'Elanna gritted her teeth, but listened silently. "They have numerous purposes, but the chief one is a feature that can make a hand or arm, or whatever extremity, numb for 30 seconds. Its really quite popular here. I think it's a status thing with the younger ones, though I don't know why their parent buy them these. They can actually be very dangerous."  
  
"Hmm, that's too bad. Besides that feature, what others are there?"  
  
He took a key out of his vest pocket, and unlocked the door. "Why don't you look at one? Its really quite self explanatory", he said as he handed her one.  
  
B'Elanna accepted it, amazed at its light weight. She turned it around and saw a small button on the side. She looked up at the salesman, who nodded her encouragement. She looked back down at the button, and then pushed.  
  
At first she didn't notice anything, but then she got the strongest urge to sneeze. She wrinkled her nose, hoping to quail the urge. Then, just as she thought she had it under control, she started to sneeze uncontrollably. She was shocked at the force behind the sneezes, her head jerking up and down.  
  
After what seemed 5 minutes of unrelenting sneezing, it suddenly stopped. Surprised, she looked up at the smirking salesman. "What the hell was that?", she asked angrily.  
  
He smiled at her, pleased. "That, my dear, is what the cabzis can do. It can numb, force sneezing attacks, and also can make you have an itch so bad, you'll nearly take off your skin just to make it go away. See, all you have to do is point it at the person, push any of the three buttons, which are clearly marked, and enjoy", he said, almost gleefully.   
  
B'Elanna looked down at the tiny silver thing that was capable of wreaking havoc so simply. She looked back up at the man.   
  
"I'll buy it."  
  
1700 ZULU  
  
Lobby  
  
"Hey, Chakotay, did you get anything?", B'Elanna asked, catching up with him  
  
Chakotay looked back, surprised. They had agreed to meet up at the turbolifts in 15 minutes, so he was still browsing at a store that sold reading material. "Well, I did get a rock that the salesman assured me came from a planet whose sun capsized. I'm sure that I was taken advantage of, but hey, he was like a Ferrengi. I felt like I was at home", he said with a laugh.  
  
B'Elanna grinned. "Well, I got something that I'm sure you'll appreciate. It reminds me of some Indian curse that I'm sure you could cast, if only it was possible", she said teasingly. She took out the small silver weapon, poised it in her hand, then shook her head. "I'm going to take pity on you, and just tell you about it, and not let you learn the hard way, like I did. You see, you push one of these three buttons, and it either makes you have a sneezing fit, a numb extremity, or itch yourself raw. Pretty neat, huh?", she said with a mischievous glint in her eye.  
  
"Yes, a regular hidden treasure you have there", Chakotay dryly said, rolling his eyes. "And also thank you for using that famous Torres self control by not attacking me with it. Its very really benevolent of you."  
  
B'Elanna laughed, slugging his arm. "Well, I guess its high time to get ready for dinner. What do you say to escorting a nice, meek girl to her room?".  
  
Chakotay swiveled his head around. "Sure, but I don't see anyone around here like that. Am I supposed to meet her or something?".  
  
"Oh, that cut deep. Come on, maquis, you and I have a date to keep.  
  
1745  
  
Guest Quarters  
  
B'Elanna quickly looked at the clock. As always, she was running late. She had 15 minutes before somebody would arrive to escort her to dinner, and she didn't even have make-up on yet. She rushed into the lavatory, and hurriedly put some eye shadow and mascara on. Tom was always telling her that she never needed make-up, but this was an occasion that warranted it. She needed to get those parts, and she needed to do it fast. If somebody just happened to give her special treatment because of the way she looked, so be it.  
  
She walked out of the restroom and into the living area. Something caught her eye on the bed, and she walked over to it. The cabzis was laying on its side. She turned away, but hesitated. What the hell, she thought. She tucked the small silver object in her shoe, the thin metal fitting rather nicely, comfortably. 'You never know', she told herself. 'Maybe some guy will try to attack me, but all he'll end up with is whiplash from sneezing. Maybe even a raw patch of skin from a sudden rash.' B'Elanna chuckled to herself imagining it.   
  
The chimer at her door went off, forcing her out of her reverie. "Come in", she said. The doors opened and revealed a small man in a dapper uniform.  
  
"Ms. Torres, I am to escort you to the Dining Hall. Are you ready?", he asked. His palms were damp. This was his first night on the job alone, and he was nervous.  
  
B'Elanna smiled at the young man. "Yes, I am. Have you talked to my superior, Commander Chakotay?".  
  
The man nodded his head. "Yes, he's over at the turbolift, waiting for you and I", he said.   
  
"Ok, I'm right behind you", she said, walking toward the door.  
  
As soon as she got to the lift, she saw Chakotay. "I see that you're on time. It must be divine intervention", he teased. The Blithian gave them a confused look, not seeing the smile on B'Elanna's face.   
  
"Yep, I'm a regular piece of proof that people can be on time, all with the good Lord's help."  
  
The doors parted when they reached their floor, and the Blithian proceeded them. Just as all three of them got off the turbolift, the young man gasped. "Oh, I just forgot to get High Council Member Noortvan's schedule. He had asked me to go pick it up for him before I escorted you two down here."   
  
Chakotay saw the look of horror pass across the man's face, and decided to give him a break. "We can go ahead and wait here for you. Besides, we are a good 10 minutes early. It won't hurt anything."  
  
The man looked at him, grateful. "Thank you so much. And I'm very sorry for the inconvenience I've caused you both", he said as he hurried toward the turbolift. "There's a waiting room you can stay in till I get back. Its to your right, the second door down. Please, wait in there", he said as the turbolift closed its doors.  
  
Both Chakotay and B'Elanna looked at each other. "Well, you heard the man. Lets go to the waiting room", Chakotay said, B'Elanna following. They reached the door, and just as Chakotay was about to open it, they heard voices coming from within.  
  
"I told you I wanted it done today. It needs to be done today, you slime. This is what I get for trusting a lowly assistant to do the job that a real man needs to do," an angry voice hissed.  
  
"Ok, I'll do it right now, if you want. But if I get caught, I want some insurance, agreed?", said a strangely familiar voice.  
  
B'Elanna looked through the small window in the door, and gasped. She recognized Bhun, the assistant. The other man she had seen before, but she couldn't remember where. Maybe it was at that….  
  
"What was that?", the man who was clearly in charge said. She saw him glimpse toward the window, and ducked.  
  
"We need to get out of here", she whispered to Chakotay, who nodded. He had heard the conversation, and had also recognized not one man, but both of them. They ran toward the another hallway, and just as they entered into it, the door opened.  
  
Bhun glanced down both directions of the hallway. "I don't see anything", he said to the man behind him. The man, used to getting his every whim satisfied, pushed Bhun out of the way.  
  
High Council Member Aqwerty looked for himself. Nothing. He turned around and grabbed the chubby man by shirt. "You get the job done, or else", he hissed, "or I'll have someone else do it, then have them take care of you. I need to win this election, and I'm not going to let some old worthless man beat me just because he has charisma, you hear? There are things at stake here that your insignificant mind cannot understand. Now get it done. NOW", he gritted through his teeth, pushing the assistant down the hall.  
  
Chakotay and B'Elanna raced down the hallway, almost bumping into Noortvan.  
  
"Oh, there you are!", he exclaimed. "I was just on my way to the Dining Hall, care to join me?", he asked.   
  
Just as Chakotay opened his mouth to say yes, Noortvan inhaled sharply. B'Elanna took a step toward him, holding out her hand. Just as she reached him, Noortvan staggered, blood bubbling from his mouth.  
  
"Oh no", she breathed. Both she and Chakotay took an arm and half carried him to a door. Just as they got it opened, B'Elanna glimpsed Bhun, raising a weapon, and pulling the trigger. Debris sprayed her face, giving her the incentive to push the 2 men into the room.   
  
"What the hell was that?", Chakotay bellowed. Noortvan made a wet sound in the back of his throat. "He's trying to say something", Chakotay said. B'Elanna leaned her head down, worry written on her face.  
  
"Its going to be ok, just don't give up." B'Elanna knew that she was lying to the man, perhaps giving him false hope. But then again, she realized that Noortvan knew he was dying. He made another sound, his mouth working. "What is it?", she whispered.  
  
He looked up at her, wondering if the pain would ever go away. No, he can't think of that now, he told himself. He needs to let these two know what to do after he was gone. After he was dead. "You need to get away and tell Vrant what happened today, tell him-", he coughed, blood dribbling down the sides of his mouth. "Tell him not to let Aqwerty get the metals." He closed his eyes, then opened them again. "Promise me", he said urgently, grabbing a hold of B'Elanna's arm.  
  
"I promise", she breathed. He looked at her intently, then nodded his head. He let go of her arm, the same time his eyes closed.  
  
Chakotay checked for a pulse. "He's gone", he said quietly. He looked over at B'Elanna. "We need to get out of here when we have a chance. B'Elanna, are you listening?", he added.  
  
She nodded numbly. "Yes", she said, then looked up. "Bhun killed Noortvan. We need to find out why", she said simply.   
  
"First we need to get out of here, then we'll worry about that, understood?". He stood up and walked toward the door and pressed his ear against it. "I don't hear anything, but that can change anytime, so we need to leave now." He looked over at B'Elanna. "Come on Lieutenant, that's an order."   
  
B'Elanna seemed to snap out of her confusion. She stood up, walking toward her friend. "I think I know the way out of here", she whispered. "But I'm not for sure."  
  
Chakotay nodded, then cracked the door, looking both ways. "Coast is clear", said. He stepped out of the hallway and darted to the other side of the wall. B'Elanna was right behind him. She led the way, continually looking side from side. They reached the end of the hallway, and stopped. She peeked out to her left, and didn't see anything. She nodded to Chakotay and started to step out first, but he stopped her. 'Me first', he mouthed. She paused, then nodded. He stepped out, and a figure jumped from a doorway and threw something at Chakotay. He immediately went down.   
  
Just as the man, Bhun, was about to tackle B'Elanna, she let out an infuriated shout. There was no way she was going to let Chakotay and her be killed by this coward. She threw herself at Bhun who, perplexed, had paused. 'Big mistake, buddy', she thought. She landed on him, throwing him into the wall. Stunned, Bhun let out a small moan. B'Elanna drew back her fist and punched him, throwing all her weight into it. Bhun instantly slumped, unconscious.  
  
B'Elanna hurried over to Chakotay, who still was passed out. She heard a shrill whistle, then a spot right above her head blew apart. She looked back and saw the man Bhun had been talking to earlier, loading his weapon. She hurriedly grasped Chakotay by his waist, and hefted him onto her shoulder. There were many times she had cursed her Klingon heritage, but now she was so grateful for her strength she almost started to cry. She dashed down the hallway, praying that the man hadn't loaded his gun. Right then she heard the familiar whistle, and a sudden explosive pain went up her thigh.   
  
She gasped, almost tripping and dropping her load, then righted herself. She ran into a turbolift she spotted at the last moment. "Lobby", puffed. She saw the doors closing, praying that the man wouldn't catch up. Just before they were fully closed, she saw a had, palm first, rushing toward the doors. Right as they closed, she glimpsed an odd tattoo at the base of his palm, like an eye of a cat. The doors closed, leaving her alone with Chakotay in the turbolift. She knew that people would be looking for her and Chakotay in a short period of time, if not already. She glanced up at the light, wondering what she could do. Then a thought came to her. "Stop turbolift", she commanded. Their descent immediately stopped.  
  
She gently laid Chakotay down. She bent close to his head, lightly slapping his face. He groaned, then opened his eyes. "You ok?", she asked. He focused his eyes, then nodded, wincing after he did so.  
  
"Just have a headache. What happened?".  
  
"Bhun and his friend tried to kill us, that's what happened. Listen, they've probably already alerted security, so we need to find a way out of here. The way I see it, we can climb up through the ceiling into the shaft, then find a way outta there. What do you think?", she asked, already trying to find a way to get up to the light.  
  
Chakotay nodded. He looked over toward her, then gasped. "What happened to your leg!". He scrambled over to a puzzled B'Elanna. Then she remembered. And so did her body. She immediately felt the mind numbing pain in her thigh. She looked down at it, and let out an unladylike shriek.   
  
Her left leg was covered in blood, and on the side of her leg, above her knee, was a huge gash. She plopped down to the floor, careful of her leg. Then she hardened her resolve. "We can take care it later, Commander. Right now we need to find a way out, before we're captured."  
  
Chakotay looked at her, then her leg. He knew that she was right. But that wound looked terrible… "Ok, lets get out of here." He stood up, then placed his foot on the hand rail. B'Elanna gingerly got up, then told him something that blew his mind.   
  
"Step on my shoulders, and then we'll be able to reach the light." She could tell he was ready to argue, so she gruffly added, "I'm Klingon, remember? I'm stronger than a lot of people, including you."  
  
He stared down at her, flabbergasted. How would he explain to the Captain that he injured her Chief of Engineering by standing on her shoulders? But then again, maybe he wouldn't have the chance to explain if they both were dead because of his hesitation. He nodded numbly, gently placing his feet onto her waiting shoulders.  
  
B'Elanna gritted her teeth against the pain and extra weight. Once Chakotay had his balance, he started to fiddle with the screws on the light. Sweat poured down her face, into her shirt. She could feel it trickling down her back and stomach, concentrating on the odd sensation. Anything to get her mind of the pain.  
  
"Got it", Chakotay announced. He lowered the light panel and then tossed it to the floor. "Here it goes, B'Elanna."  
  
She grunted her acknowledgement. Chakotay lifted himself off her shoulders, and into darkness. B'Elanna looked up, waiting for him to reappear. Suddenly she felt weak, and collapsed to the floor, numbly watching for Chakotay. His head appeared, and once he saw her on the floor, he started to scramble down to her. "No!", she yelled, lifting her arm to stop him. "I'm coming. Just whatever you do, don't come down. It took lots of hard work to get you up there, maquis, and don't be thinking I'm gonna be hauling your heavy rear end up there again", she added, trying to add bravado to her voice.   
  
He nodded. "Then come on. No one's allowed to sleep on the job but me", he smiled, laughing gently. "Just stand up and grab a hold of my hand and I'll do the rest, ok", he added encouragingly.  
  
She took a deep breath, then stood up. She leaned against the wall for a second, willing the dizziness to go away. She looked up at him, and said, "I don't think that scrawny arm is strong enough to lift me up." She smiled and gave him her hand.  
  
"Ya, well, you got me figured out. All I have to do now is turn us into birds, then we can fly away. Its an old Indian trick, but for some reason it never works for me." He grabbed her hand, and started to lift her up. After a couple of minutes of countless swears and grunts, B'Elanna found herself beside him.   
  
"Ok, lets find a way out of here, shall we?" She looked up and saw a shaft about two feet above them. She pointed to it. "Theres where we can go. Me first", she said as she started to lift herself up. Within four minutes, both of them were in the small shaft, wiggling through it. Ten minutes later, they came to grill. B'Elanna looked through it, then whispered, "It looks like a small maintenance room. I'll just try to get this thing off", she said as she started to wrestle with the grill. With a loud screeching noise, the grill fell off onto the floor.  
  
B'Elanna slipped out of the confined shaft, and started to look around. Chakotay stepped beside her, and saw a bag full of clothes. He walked over to it, and started going through it, picking out a couple of uniforms and some towels. "Thank goodness these are clean", he said to B'Elanna, who had sat down on the floor, examining her leg. He walked over to her, and sat down in front of her. "Ok, let me see that leg."  
  
B'Elanna stretched her leg out toward him. He gingerly grasped the fabric, and tore it apart, leaving her whole thigh bare. "Oh, B'Elanna, this doesn't look good", he stated, shaking his head as he started to clean the deep 6 inch gash with water. Once he was sure it was as clean as it would get, he started to wrap it up with the towels. All the while through Chakotay's ministrations, she kept on thinking of the events so far today. She knew it was cold blooded to think that if they had just come a few weeks before, then they wouldn't be in this mess. Noortvan wouldn't be dead-yet-, and they could have just gotten the stupid parts and would have continued on their way, oblivious. She sighed. If only…  
  
"Ok, that should cover it as best as we can do now. Once we get back to Voyager, we can have the Doctor look at it." Chakotay saw the look in B'Elanna's eyes. He put his hand on her shoulder. "Yes, we will be back on Voyager. Soon. I promise."  
  
B'Elanna nodded, staving back the tears. "Then lets find a way." Chakotay helped her up, leading her to the only chair in the small room. She sat, favoring her left thigh. He walked over to the door, and put his ear to it. "I don't hear anything. Lets try to get out of here now, then find some way to communicate with Voyager, tell them we need help now."  
  
Suddenly the door crashed open, hurling Chakotay into B'Elanna. As soon as both she and Chakotay looked up, they found 15 guards almost on top of them, weapons mere inches from their noses. Right behind them stood Aqwerty, who glided into the room. "No, my friends. You are quite mistaken. You see, there is no way I can let you both go, especially since you know my involvement with poor Noortvan's tragic death. Instead, I have place in mind that I think would be sufficient to get rid of you two. How do you feel about mining for radioactive materials?"  
  
B'Elanna tightened her grip on Chakotay's hand. This mission was just getting more perfect as it went. 


	3. Chapter 3

2210  
  
Lt. Paris' Quarters  
  
Tom looked at himself in the mirror. He could have looked worse, but right now he was sure he could scare small children by just looking in their general direction. He almost laughed when he had a mental image of the small thought. Almost. B'Elanna and Chakotay hadn't checked in when they were supposed to. He knew that it had been a rather large worrying factor for everyone when the Blithians had made it clear that using commbadges on their planet was an act of some kind of espionage, but they had taken care of that worry somewhat when they offered their hailing services to the two officers who were coming to their planet. They had taken care of the Universal Translator problem when the Doctor suggested implanting one in each of their ears. They had enough battery power to last 6 months, Tom knew, but he hoped that they wouldn't need that 6 months of battery power. He didn't know what was going on in that planet. Maybe there was some kind of problem that disabled the communications on the alien world, but Tom had a feeling that wasn't the case.   
  
He rubbed his face with his hands, as if to wipe off some kind of thing that was foreign to him that was not pleasant. Like fear. Fear for his, well, his everything. His friend, his confidante, his lover. He knew something was wrong, but he couldn't do anything about it. Sure, he could tell the Captain, but he had a feeling that she also thought that something was going terribly wrong. And what could she do? Jump from the ship to the planet, knowing that they wouldn't allow Voyager any closer than it already is, fight off millions of the inhabitants, photon rifle blazing, rescue Chakotay and B'Elanna from god knows what, jump back to Voyager, and ride into the sunset, safe and sound? Of course, Tom would be right beside her the whole time, and he knew that he was willing to do anything to make sure B'Elanna was safe, but he also knew it wasn't practical. Or what Tuvok would readily point out, logical.   
  
He sat on his bed, knowing that he needed some sleep since he would start his shift at 0700, but he couldn't will himself to rest. Not while B'Elanna was in possible danger. He half heartedly smiled. He realized that B'Elanna could take care of herself, and anyone saying differently would be most unpleasantly surprised, especially when she proved them wrong in her most charming technique. He just hoped she and Chakotay were fine, and that his gut feeling was a case of indigestion. But he knew that it was just wishful thinking.  
  
2240  
  
Mess Hall  
  
Seven was restless, and she didn't know why, or maybe she wouldn't acknowledge why. She knew that she was worried about Chakotay and B'Elanna, like everyone else, but that was normal, right? She wanted to talk to the Doctor about her feelings and thoughts of lately, but he was busy with the slide show he was preparing for the crew. Seven furrowed her brow, thinking about the next possible time the Doctor would be free to continue with her lessons. Sighing, she realized that it probably wouldn't be until after the Commander and Lieutenant came back on board. But when would that be? And why was she so anxious about their not returning?  
  
She did have to admit that she thought highly of the Commander. He was an exceptional authority figure, and he knew how to command a whole starship. And she did enjoy it when he would join her in the Mess Hall when it was time to have one of her nutrition supplements the Doctor had prescribed for her. And that was saying a lot since she cherished her privacy, and still not comfortable around people in certain situations. Yes, she thought, Chakotay was an individual that she had grown to respect, and perhaps even like.   
  
And B'Elanna…Well, with B'Elanna you just had to tolerate her rather assertive nature, though Seven did have to admit that she was extremely intelligent and competent. And she could be pleasant if you got her in the right mood.   
  
Seven glanced at the clock above the serving bar, and almost fell out of her chair. She still had to regenerate, then report to duty in a little over 6 hours. She lifted herself out of her chair, and headed toward the door. Just before reaching the sliding doors, she paused, and turned toward the planet that filled the large bay windows. For the first time in years, she felt heartsick. And lonely.  
  
0100  
  
Captain's Ready Room  
  
Kathryn Janeway stared at the monitor of her computer, seeing nothing. What was she going to do? She knew that she was going to have to hold a meeting for the senior staff members and tell them about the message an anonymous individual sent her about her missing crew members. As she rubbed her mouth, she kept thinking about what she would tell Tom about B'Elanna, about them being sold into the Blithian equivalent of the black market. And how would she tell everyone that there was no way to find out where they were sent in the Delta Quadrant, which labor camp.   
  
She got up from her chair and walked over to the Rembrandt sculpture she had splurged on when she was first assigned to Voyager. She ran her hand over it, thinking of all the dreams she had shared with her fiancé, David. And all of the dreams that were gone now, since he had married some other woman one year after the U.S.S. Voyager was pronounced lost. She remembered the sick hollow feeling in her stomach when she read the message he had sent to her when the worm hole that allowed contact with Starfleet was open. The heartache and loss. But she had gotten through that, though she was still not completely over it. But she hoped that they would reach Earth before she would grow too old to find someone to share the remainder of her life with, however long that might be. The Captain slid her hand off the sculpture, her hand trembling. But now Chakotay and B'Elanna would never have that opportunity or choice.   
  
'Stop it, Janeway", she told herself. She berated herself. Here she was, already thinking of their eulogies, already dead and buried, and she hadn't even given them a fighting chance. Hadn't even searched for them. There had to be some kind of way to track them down, to find people who had seen them. After all, there was only one human, that wasn't on the ship, in the Delta Quadrant. And even better, only one Klingon period in the whole Quadrant. They had to look odd to some persons who had never heard of either races before. So surly they would remember seeing them when they would be transported to the slave camp. That is, if they were in fact being sold into slavery. She walked over to her desk, and looked at the message again:  
  
Cpt. Janeway, I am writing this to inform you that your officers have been sold to a slave marketer. I suggest you accept this loss and go on about your way if you do not desire trouble for your entire crew. Do not try to contact me in any way. It would be useless to do so and would only cause you more trouble than what you already have. I will tell this to you though, that most slaves are sent to mine for precious metals and, if especially abhorred, radioactive material. Please use your discretion in this knowledge.  
  
That was all that he had written. But it did give them a fighting chance to find them. And that's all that Voyager has ever had, and look at them now. They had been wandering in this Quadrant for years, and they were still alive and kicking. So why not two of her experienced officers? Yes, she thought, they still had a chance, but they would have to act quickly.  
  
Time and Location Unknown  
  
She felt something rumble underneath her. For one bizarre moment, she thought she was back on her home planet Nessik. She almost expected to open her eyes to see her mother sitting on her bed, rubbing her arm to wake her. And then that was when it hit her. She wasn't on Nessik. In fact, she had no idea where she was.   
  
She heard a groan a couple of feet away from her, and instinctively knew it was Chakotay. She willed her eyes open and almost gasped at the pain that exploded through her head. She slowly sat up, wincing at the pain in her leg, and placed both of her hands on the sides of her head, as if to keep it from rolling off. Glancing to her right, she saw a figure a yard away from her moving. She leaned down, ready to defend herself from this unknown person. The figure moaned again, and she relaxed. She crawled over to Chakotay and rolled him over to his back. Suddenly he lunged, grabbing her by her throat and squeezing. Surprised, B'Elanna tried to tell him that it was okay, that it was only her. But the only sound she could emit was a low gurgle. Lifting one of her hands, she chopped at the nerve at the base of his elbow. His grip loosened, and she wrestled out of his grasp.  
  
"What the hell's wrong with you?", she wheezed, rubbing at her throat.  
  
Chakotay looked up, still slightly dazed. "B'Elanna? Was that you?" He tried to stand up, but promptly fell unceremoniously on the gritty floor.   
  
B'Elanna went to him on all fours and placed her hands on his shoulders, gently lowering him to the ground. She looked at his face and saw a large gash on his forehead, no doubt the reason for his dizziness. "Chakotay, do you hear me?", she asked.  
  
He moaned and looked up at her. He smiled slightly and murmured, "Hey maquis." He sat up, grimacing. "So, do you have any idea where we are?".  
  
B'Elanna shook her head. "I just came to a couple of minutes ago. But I think we're on a ship of some sort. I can feel engines reverberating, so it must be some kind of low class ship." She paused, not wanting to say what both of them were thinking. But Chakotay beat her to it.  
  
"Well, that Aqwerty fellow had asked us if we would enjoy mining for radioactive materials. But the idiot had those guards knock us unconscious before we could voice our objections, though I doubt he would have cared", he said sardonically. He looked around the small holding chamber, looking for a door. He sighed and faced B'Elanna. "I guess we should take care of our injuries and come up with some plan before we have visitors." Chakotay fingered the wound on his forehead, wincing. "I think other than the expected bumps and bruises, and this nasty gash, I'm good to go" he said, already looking down at her thigh. "You, on the other hand, are another story. How's your leg?", he asked as he bent down.  
  
B'Elanna stepped back, uncomfortable with the attention. She had always hated it when she had to go to the Doctor, unwilling to accept weakness of any sort. She knew that it would be extremely idiotic to avoid treatment now, considering their circumstances, but old habits die hard.  
  
"Umm, it still hurts, but I think it'll be fine. I just have to avoid infection, and when we get back to Voyager, the Doctor will take care of the rest", she said, lowering herself to the floor. She was still kind of sore from having to wake up, then defending herself against Chakotay. She looked up at him, wondering what he was thinking. She met his eyes, and saw right there that he didn't believe what she had said. Sure, the Doctor would look after her "if" they got back to Voyager. They had no idea where they themselves were at the moment, so how could they expect the Captain to find them?   
  
B'Elanna was just opening her mouth to tell him not to worry when a door that had been hidden in the shadows opened to reveal 4 men. Three of them stayed back by the door as their apparent leader marched up to them. Chakotay and B'Elanna stood up, with Chakotay in the front. Since he was the ranking officer between the two, it was his responsibility to negotiate and protect the officers under his command. At least this is what B'Elanna told herself, resisting the urge to meet the man nose to nose.  
  
The man stopped in front of Chakotay and said, "I am here to inform you that you have two choices to make. One, if you want to live, and two, for how long."   
  
The Blithian, upon being closer and easier to see, resembled a weasel, with dank brown hair and nose that seemed to twitch every few seconds. B'Elanna immediately dubbed him Mortimer, the class mascot when she was in grade school. She had been 13 when her teacher had brought in the weasel, something she had never seen before. At first, she had thought it was a project from biology class gone wrong. Then she was enlightened that it was actually a quite common creature on Earth, though a pesky one. B'Elanna had been disgusted by it at first sight.   
  
Mortimer pierced B'Elanna with his eyes, a leer curling his lips and making him even more repulsive than before thought possible. She met his stare head on, her head held high, almost arrogantly. There was no way she was going to be intimidated by this middle-man rodent. In fact, she thought, she would just like to see him try something, just so that she could have the excuse to wring his scrawny neck. She almost snorted when she pictured him trying to fight back.  
  
Chakotay saw the sneer that this man sent B'Elanna, and he had no doubt whatsoever what was going through her head. Not wanting to waste anymore time, he said, "Go on, we're listening."  
  
Mortimer smirked. "You have the choice of either telling us of your technology, and the intentions of your starship when it first arrived in our territory, or you can start mining raw materials as early as tomorrow morning. Of course, if you go with the former, we will return you to your ship, unscathed. However, if you choose the latter, you will die within 3 months." He looked at the both of them, seemingly thrilled at the prospect of them working their hands raw, and eventually dying from exposure to radioactive matter.  
  
Even before Mortimer was finished with his discourse, Chakotay was shaking his head. "It's a crime in our culture to give technology to other peoples. Its called the Prime Directive, and its punishment is very severe. You'll just have to tell your superiors that its just not possible for us to do this." Chakotay said this firmly, without any room for argument.   
  
Mortimer's face turned a shade of red that B'Elanna had never seen before until now. She looked at Chakotay and saw that his jaw line was firm, unrelenting. Perhaps she can buy them time, she thought. Chakotay probably wouldn't be thrilled about what she was about to do, but if there was more time for them to figure out where they were, they might somehow contact Voyager. Her mind raced, two different wars going on inside of her head. One side, the maquis side, told her to do whatever it took to ensure their lives, including using unorthodox means. The other side, Starfleet, told her to follow protocol, which was, of course, to remain silent, just offering your name and rank.   
  
So which side would she heed? The Starfleet side was more disciplined, of course. If she did decide to do whatever it takes to live, she could face a court-martial, and severe disciplinary action. But what if she isn't alive to be disciplined? If she could just somehow have Mortimer leave them alone and be able to talk with Chakotay about different options, that would be ideal. However, she didn't think that Chakotay would agree with her, atleast not right away.   
  
Just as Mortimer turned on his heel with a huff, B'Elanna decided what action to take.  
  
"Wait!", she said, taking a step toward the twitchy man. Chakotay whirled around, pinning her with his eyes.   
  
"Just what do you think you're doing, Lieutenant? Stand down, NOW", Chakotay said through clenched teeth.   
  
"Yes, uh, Lieutenant?", Mortimer asked with expectation in his voice. He stepped toward her, nodding toward the guards by the door, who started to come into the room.  
  
B'Elanna swallowed, wondering if she went too far this time. No, she tells herself, she needs to get herself and Chakotay to safety, away from these people. She knew that if she didn't do it in time, they would be dead. "If you leave the Commander and I alone to discuss this, we may come to an agreement." She looked pointedly at the guards advancing toward them, then back to Mortimer. "But only if you leave us alone, and not to listen in on our conversation." She looked at him, refusing to back down to this man.   
  
Mortimer considered this, weighing his options. "Fine, but I want something definite." He started to walk away, then turned back. "And if you don't stick to our agreement, you will regret it." He stared at B'Elanna, then to Chakotay, then swished on his delicate feet and walked out of the room with his posse.  
  
As soon as they were gone, Chakotay whirled around to B'Elanna, furious. "You had better tell me what the hell got into you, Lieutenant, before I throw your sorry rear end to the next Quadrant", he whispered through clenched teeth.  
  
B'Elanna nodded, trying to figure out what to say to him. "Chakotay, we need to buy time. We need to pretend to consider giving them information, that way maybe they'll let us out of this storage deck, and into somewhere where they have a communication system of some sort." She looked up at Chakotay, wanting to see his reaction. To her surprise, he had a contemplating look on his face. Finally, he nodded.  
  
"You're right. Now we just have to decide how to deceive him into thinking we're cooperating. Any ideas?"   
  
B'Elanna nodded slowly. "Yes, but its risky. I think that maybe I can tell them how to overload the warp engines. You see, at first you actually get more power, and therefore go faster, but then it eventually heats the engines and they give out, sometimes for good. We can chalk it up to that their ship is old, and not able to tolerate the energy output as well as Voyager." She took a deep breath, trying to steady her heartbeat. "We just have to hope that they'll take us to another part of the ship when we tell them this, and then try to break free."  
  
Chakotay nodded, thinking. He knew that this was the one chance they would have before they would be sent to the mining fields. "Lets do it. But one thing, no if, ands, or buts about it, okay? We do not, under any circumstances, split up, got it?" He looked at her for a long time, making sure that she knew that he was dead serious about this.  
  
She nodded. "Agreed", she said, looking him in the eyes as she said it. She knew just as well as he did that they couldn't be separated, risking losing each other. "Ok, lets get Mortimer in here, and tell him how to tinker with his ship."  
  
Chakotay looked at her, confused. "Mortimer?"  
  
She snorted. "It's a long story. Short version, he reminds me of a rodent that had the pleasure of my acquaintance. His name happened to be Mortimer."  
  
Chakotay nodded, smiling. "I'll trust that its well called for. Now, as for negotiating, we need to talk to wee Mortimer." He turned toward the door, and cupped his hands around his mouth. "We're ready!", he yelled.  
  
Just after Chakotay bellowed, Mortimer opened the door and scurried into the room. "Well, what do you have for me?"  
  
B'Elanna stepped beside Chakotay. "I can help you rig your engines to where they can have as much as 55% more power. However, I need to do this personally, and the Commander needs to assist me." She looked at him, expecting her heart to burst as it beat faster and faster, louder and louder. If this worked, they could be buying their ticket to home. If it didn't, well…  
  
Mortimer was absolutely delighted. Not only would he have faster engines, but these two pesky aliens could be sold for a pretty penny to the highest bidder. Aqwerty had told him that as long as he never would have to see these two again alive, he could do anything with them. "That sounds like a good start. Lets start right now." He started walking toward the door, fully expecting them to follow him.  
  
"Just one more thing. We're both hungry and need medical attention. If you want us to perform optimally, we need both of these things." She looked at Chakotay, and saw him nod. They both knew that they needed to take care of their physical needs before they would attempt a big escapade.  
  
Mortimer considered this, then bobbed his head in agreement. "Of course. Lets get this over and done with." He fluttered from the room.  
  
Chakotay and B'Elanna looked at each other, amazed. "Lets just hope that we have a successful sabotage session, and then get the hell out of here", B'Elanna murmured. Though for some reason, she had a feeling that something wouldn't go according to plan. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

1400 ZULU

Neelix's Quarters

He was utterly speechless. Had it not been such a disturbing afternoon, he was sure he could have found it funny that he, the sometimes annoying Talaxian who speaks too much for his own good, couldn't utter a comprehensive sentence. But it was far from funny at the moment. B'Elanna and Chakotay were gone. Sold. Kidnapped. Maybe…maybe dead.

He shot up from his chair, not wanting to think about it. But he couldn't help not to. It just didn't make sense at all. He had been reading up on the cultural practices of these people, and if he had read it right, they didn't believe in slavery, or hard labor. Sure, there were no doubt cases where the wayward Blithian would take a small dip into this dark side of civilization, but it went against everything that was taught in their educational structure. It was even taught in their folklore that making other things work for you against their will was a horrible thing to do. So why say that B'Elanna and Chakotay were sold into this scheme?

The Captain had said during the meeting that she thought they had a number of options to choose from. Either they stay and pester the government until they cough up something, or they look for their crewmates themselves, without the help of the Blithians, at least not officially. Well, he believed that they should take their chances and look for them themselves. That way no politician would get in their way and try to smooth talk them.

When Neelix thought of this, he remembered something that he had seen on the news program for Blithia. Something to do with a politician being found dead, assassinated. At first, Neelix had just shrugged it off, but now he got to thinking of the coincidence of this high official being killed on the same day that the Commander and Lieutenant went missing. Didn't the first person they talked to to arrange for a meeting between Voyager and their government say that Chakotay and B'Elanna would be talking to a high official? In fact, Neelix thought, he had said he was a very high official.

"Neelix to Captain Janeway", he said, as he pressed his commbadge.

"Janeway here. What is it, Neelix?", the Captain replied.

Neelix swallowed, thinking of the significance of this theory if it proved right. "Captain, I really need to talk to you. Privately. I think…well, I think I may have found something that may have to do with the Commander and Lieutenant's disappearance."

1643 ZULU

Blithian Cargo Ship

B'Elanna smelled the gruel that a kitchen aid had laid in front of her. If she had read Chakotay's expression correctly, then he was just as disgusted with his fare as much as she was with hers. 

"Well, I guess that since we don't know the next time that we'll eat will be, we should indulge our appetites and eat this…stuff." Chakotay took a breath after he said this, as if trying to convince himself that this was the wisest course. By the look of his face, it didn't seem that he quite believed this argument.

B'Elanna nodded. She knew what it was like to not know when you would eat next, or what. Both of them did. This was just one of the many hazards when you were in the Maquis. B'Elanna almost laughed when she thought of the other risks. Torture, prison, disfigurement, death. Oh, and yeah, having to eat stuff like this, and be thankful for it. The horrible sacrifices you had to pay in order to let your opinion be made known. She raised her fork and chucked some into her mouth, swallowing as fast she could. "Not bad really. My mother's sister made me eat far worse when we went to her house. At least this isn't still moving."

Chakotay stopped chewing in mid motion, and looked at her. "Really? Well, I'm certainly relieved I was never invited to a family dinner. I'd probably blanche when I would see the food and one of your, uh, men folk would challenge me to some kind of battle. I'd be lucky if he would only break my teeth out for offending his dear wife and her remarkable cooking abilities."

B'Elanna looked at him, grinning. "Well, for one thing, I never invited any of my friends home, and for another, my uncle wouldn't have to challenge you. My aunt would have beaten him to it. And she would have done much worse then knocking your teeth out. I'm sure you would have lost a limb, or some other valuable body part."

Chakotay shifted in his seat, imagining what that body part could have been. Trying to take his mind off that uncomfortable scenario, he finally brought up their situation, far more threatening. "We need to talk about how we'll go about this. Tell me your plans, and we'll go from there."

B'Elanna swallowed the last of her meal. She knew that after they were done eating, they would be taken to get showers and medical attention. After this, Mortimer would then take them to task about getting what he was promised, a more efficient ship. B'Elanna was planning on giving him much more than that.

"Well, Mortimer will come and get us, and that's when we'll make it clear that we refuse to be separated. After some fuss, he'll eventually agree, I'm sure. That's when he'll take me to the engines and I work my magic." She took a deep breath, already nervous just by talking about it. "After that, it'll take about 2 hours for the engines to overheat, and by then we'll have persuaded Mortimer to let us out of the storage hold and into some other kind of quarters with a bathroom. From there, we can hopefully get up into the vents via the air duct I was thinking, unless another opportunity shows its face or the vent hole is too small, which I don't think will be the case. After that, if we're in the venting system, we can just hop out as soon as we see some room that looks safe or that has the equipment that we need. What do you think?" B'Elanna rubbed her chin, anxious to know what Chakotay would say. She realized that he was the commanding officer, and therefore plan everything, but ever since they were in the Maquis together, they worked well when they shared possible solutions and worked them out till they were a positive way out of their current situation.

Chakotay nodded, contemplating what their options were. B'Elanna had a good strategy with few faults, and if she was right in thinking they could get into the air ducts, they could go almost everywhere in the ship. And, Chakotay thought, that would be the best thing right now, considering their circumstances. "Ok, lets do it. But one thing," Chakotay said. He looked at the door on the far side of the room, the only way out of the kitchen. The man that had served them their dinner had gone out that door, to the waiting guards that were sitting right outside. No doubt Mortimer didn't give them any credit for their intelligence, thinking that they would try to make an escape, spatula and frying pan in hand.

He looked back at B'Elanna and leaned closer toward her. "If anything happens to the other one, the remaining one needs to get out of here and get back to Voyager. I know that neither one of us wants to consider that possibility, but its exactly that--a possibility." Chakotay held B'Elanna's gaze, making his point clear. There was, of course, the tragic but potential chance of such a thing to happen. It certainly was a common possibility before they were both recruited on Voyager, and now it exactly like that again. Both B'Elanna and Chakotay had an unspoken understanding that for right now, they were both in the Maquis again, where dangerous and life threatening conditions were everyday occurrences. And to counteract that danger, they were resorting back to Maquis tactics. It was, as it was said earlier, an unspoken pact that would no doubt never be revealed to anyone on Voyager, if they were able to get back there, that is.

"Understood." B'Elanna had a fleeting sense of fear, of one of them not making it back. She loved Chakotay, not in the way that she loved Tom, but in a platonic sense. Yet, she still thought that her love for Chakotay was stronger than that for Tom, simply because they had been through so much together and knew each other through and through. The thought of not having Chakotay by her side after this mission was acutely painful. 'Well', she thought, 'I guess we had better just not let that happen.'

Chakotay saw the expression on B'Elanna's fade and turn into something stronger. Just as he opened his mouth to ask if she was ok, Mortimer strutted through the door, heading toward their table. He had changed into a deep purple frock which swallowed him up to the ankles, reminding Chakotay of a some kind of disturbed plum that had enveloped the little man within its wet orb.

"Why hello. I'm sure you find the fare you have been served to be rather…primitive, shall we say, to what you are no doubt used to. But I assure you, that once you have worked on my ship and completed your task, I will grant you a much more delectable meal. Now, I'm sure you want to wash and change, and then get medical attention. So if you follow me, I will escort you to the medical unit." Without further ado, Mortimer seized his rather fruity looking garment and swished around, not looking back, and headed to the door.

Chakotay shook his head as he surveyed the little man in his gaudy outfit. "You must be very secure in your manhood to wear such a thing and flounce in it." He sighed and got up from his chair. "What do you say, Maquis? Do I look as if I need to take a shower? Because if you're any indication, I'd have to say that we both need a 20 minute sonic shower." He laughed at her glower, and then added, "Well, I guess that means a yes."

B'Elanna got up from her seat and put her hands on her hips, trying to look authoritive. "We'll just see how long that smile will last on your pretty face while they're giving you an enema. After all, I don't want anything to aggravate that horrible case of constipation, which is probably caused by having such a big head." She laughed at the look on his face. "Hey now, I'm just kidding. But you had better watch it, or I'll have to tell them of the horrible time you have trying to urinate."

"Ok, ok. Point taken. You look as fresh as a cotton blossom. Happy now?"

B'Elanna tried to put on a stern look, and then gave a curt nod. "Very. But that reminds me. What do we say about our injuries? I mean, how will we know that they're treating them right? After all, we're the only kind of our species they have ever encountered."

Chakotay rubbed his chin, thinking. "I haven't even thought about that. I guess just have them patch us up, no real work. And no enemas or prostate exams, got it?", he asked with a grin.

B'Elanna gave him a wry look and rolled her eyes. "Yes, I'll try to resist the temptation."

Chakotay laughed, then motioned her forward. "Ladies first." B'Elanna gave him a pointed glare, then followed the purple fiend.

As they both exited the room, a guard attached himself to either one of them. "You will both be taken to different showering halls to maintain security and decorum. Follow me", the guard said, the one trying to escort Chakotay.

Chakotay and B'Elanna looked at looked at each other. "Excuse me, but we will not be separated for any reason. No offense", Chakotay sarcastically said as he gave each guard a droll glance, "but we need to keep tabs on each other. In order to make sure of the other's safety, you understand."

The head guard gave them each a tiring look. "So you want to take a shower together? Absolutely not. You will just have to put up with not seeing each other for a mere 20 minutes. I'm sure you can handle that." The guard gave his underling a smile, who snorted in return.

"I'm sure that there are curtains to separate the showers. Now, unless we can't resolve this issue, I will need to speak to the Captain of the ship." Chakotay held his ground, looking directly at the guard, showing him that he was serious. He atleast hoped the showers had curtains. But if they didn't, well, they could just not look at anything they didn't need to see. This would just be one more thing they wouldn't tell anyone else when they got back on Voyager.

The guard narrowed his eyes, highly irritated that this…this alien thought himself important enough to have him, the head guard, jump through hoops for him. But then again, he didn't want to admit that he couldn't take care of this situation himself. "Fine. But don't you be thinking that after this you can do whatever you want. I'll quickly disabuse you of that notion, in a way you will never forget. Got it?", he sneered at the two of them.

Chakotay nodded, not trusting himself to say anything. He heard B'Elanna huff a sigh and he quickly shot her a warning glance. They couldn't afford to be locked up into tighter security just because of a stupid shower.

The 2 guards jabbed them in the back, a clear message for them to get moving. After walking for about 10 minutes, they finally came to an entrance with a keypad. B'Elanna smiled, thinking about how incredibly stupid the guards were. They just practically gave them a guided tour of the ship they were being held hostage on. If she had been in their shoes, she would have had blindfolds used and would have guided the prisoners down all kinds of hallways, disorienting them so that they wouldn't be able to memorize their way around the ship.

The head guard coded in a password and the door slid open. They were lead into a small locker like room where they were told to disrobe and then go into the next room where there would be showers. All the while, the guards stood there, obviously not planning on giving them any privacy. Chakotay cleared his throat. "Would you mind excusing us while we change?". B'Elanna crossed her arms and gave each one a spiteful glower. There was no way in high heaven she was going to take off her clothes in front of these 2 mammoths.

The head guard snorted. "Remember, you already used your free pass by demanding to stay together. I'm afraid", he said, leering at B'Elanna, "that we will have to make sure you won't try anything cute. No offense, of course." He smiled at his use of the same phrase Chakotay had used moments before.

Chakotay gave them each a fierce look, then turned to B'Elanna. 'Sorry', he mouthed. She shook her head, not believing this. 'Well, I can just keep my under wear on.'

She sat on the bench, starting to remove her shoes, and that's when she remembered. Her mind flashed back to the quarters she had been given when they were still on Blithia. She saw herself tuck the cabzis into her shoe, thinking for some odd reason she might want to use it. She first thanked Khaless for her instincts, then she started to think up a plan in order to keep the small weapon hidden from the 2 Blithian Nazis. She furtively looked around. She could just slip it under the bench, but she had no idea if they would even come back into this room. Someone may just come in to get their clothes to wash them, and they could be given some other clothes till theirs were ready. There was no way to tell. Then she thought of something. It certainly wouldn't be comfortable, and there was no way she would put her mouth on it afterwards, but it was a way to hide it. She stood up and cleared her throat to get attention.

Chakotay stopped taking off his shoes, motionless. What was she doing now? He tried to get her attention, but she refused to meet his eyes. Maybe she was too embarrassed by the whole situation. He certainly was.

The guard sneered at her. "What now?". These 2 aliens were becoming to be the most demanding persons he had ever met. Right after his life partner, that is.

"I have to use the restroom. Could you please show me where one is?". She shifted uncomfortably, hoping that he would think she needed to relieve herself right away.

The guard rolled his eyes. "Why don't you just go in the shower? It would save us all a lot of time."

B'Elanna's breath caught. She didn't count on him saying something like that. Now, she thought grimly to herself, she would have to improvise. "Well, unless you want to clean up after me, I can go in the shower. But I can assure you, it won't be pretty." She raised an eyebrow, trying to get her point across.

The guard grimaced, then turned to the lesser ranking one. "Show her where it is. And be quick."

B'Elanna started following him, then turned to Chakotay and mouthed, 'Its ok.' Chakotay gave a slight nod, worry burrowing his brow. She turned back to the guard and followed him to a small alcove. "Hurry up", he ordered harshly. B'Elanna nodded, trying to look embarrassed. She didn't have to try that hard. She stepped through the door, shutting it. She quickly lifted her leg and slipped the cabzis out of her shoe. She placed it on the floor, then hurriedly pulled her pants off. She picked up the small weapon. She slipped her underwear off, then looked at the cabzis. She was hoping that since it was thin and small enough, she could slip it between her cheeks. She could just clench her buttocks together, and hope that it would stay in place. She would have to be careful how she walked, not drawing any attention to herself. But considering the leers she got from both of the guards, they would both be looking pretty close. But this was the best she could do. There was no way she was going to put it anywhere else, so she would just have to square her shoulders and move on. Yet one more thing no one would hear about after they would get back to Voyager. She hurriedly slipped it into place. She tentivly took a step, getting the feel of it. She guessed that she could be able to do this, but not for very long. She pulled her pants back up, then flushed the toilet, going along with her ploy. She walked out of the room, and the guard escorted her back to the locker room. She was thankful to see that Chakotay wasn't there, probably already in the showers. She slipped off her clothes, down to her underwear. She stared directly at the guard as she did this, trying to make him embarrassed. It didn't. Clenching with all her might, she walked into the showers. She was sure the head guard would be disappointed to see her not fully undressed, but he would just have to deal with it. There was no way she would, or could, go completely nude. Not only would it be humiliating, but it would also no doubt become obvious she was trying to hide something.

When she turned the corner that lead to the showers, she was happy to see that there were, in fact, curtains in place to separate the showers. She could see Chakotay behind one of them, wetting his hair. He saw her and gave a small grin, then motioned with his head to the shower right next to his. She slowly walked over, trying not to draw any undue attention, which would be hard considering that she was the only female in there. She finally reached the shower and slipped inside, closing the curtain after herself.

Chakotay glanced at her and whispered, "This is one of the best times we can talk. Not only will we have some privacy, but the water will drone out our conversation." He waited until he saw her nod and then continued. "The man that was giving Bhun orders is one of the top contenders for the High Council. He was a direct opponent to Noortvan, which is probably why he had him killed."

Chakotay started scrubbing his hair, trying to look nonchalant. B'Elanna wetted her hair and started to do the same. She stared straight ahead, not wanting to embarrass Chakotay, and especially herself. Just as she started to think about their current predicament, she blushed deeply, then turned her face, hoping Chakotay didn't see her. She wasn't so lucky.

"B'Elanna, I realize that this is an uncomfortable situation, but we need to get through it. B'Elanna, look at me." She furtively glanced his way, then raised her eyebrows. "Yes?", she asked, with a hint of cynicism in her voice.

Chakotay sighed. "I know, I know. We'll never talk about this again. Agreed?". B'Elanna smiled. "You bet that tattoo we won't, or I'll be telling everyone on board about that one time you-".

"Ok, ok. Just keep your mouth shut, Maquis." Chakotay smiled at her, then his face got serious again. "To go on, I was saying that the man's name is Aqwerty, and he's already been investigated for all kinds of corruption, but nothing has ever stuck. I was reading about it at that bookstore in the lobby of the hotel we were staying at. So now we need to find out who Vrant is, the guy who Noortvan mentioned before he died, and the metals he didn't want Aqwerty to get."

They were interrupted by the guard who was banging a baton against the wall. "Ok, you two. Party time is up. Now I need to take you two to the medic, then I'm off duty. So hurry up."

Chakotay glanced at B'Elanna, who turned her shower off. "Looks like we have quite a few things to figure out, and little time to do it." He sighed. "Now we need to get that leg looked at, and then we can start our plan."

"Chakotay, wait." B'Elanna turned her shower back on, acting as if she hadn't rinsed her hair well enough. "Remember that small weapon I got before we were to meet Nootvan?". At Chakotay's nod, she continued. "I had put it in my shoe before we left, and, well, I still have it. I just remembered it when I started to change."

"Wait. So you still have it? Where?". Then it dawned on him. "Maybe I don't want to know. Well, however you get the job done", he said, with a wink.

B'Elanna rolled her eyes. "I didn't do it _that_way, you idiot. Lets just say that its safe and sound, though maybe a bit uncomfortable."

Chakotay grinned. "Whatever you say. But hey, good job. We can use that if we need it. At least now we're not defenseless. Now, before those two hooligans come over and help us out, I suggest we mosey on out of here and get decent. Oh, and ladies first", he said with a twinkle in his eye.

1715 ZULU

Blithian Cargo Ship

Medical Bay

B'Elanna winced as the young Blithian poored what she hoped was antiseptic on her thigh. She knew that she was going to need stitches, considering how deep and long the wound was. She wasn't worried about that, since she had had so many in the past, but what she was worried about was that the young man was just that. Young, too young, in fact.

When B'Elanna had winced, the young Blithian looked up with a start, as if surprised that she was a living, breathing thing he was working on, not a plastic dummy. "Did that hurt?", he asked, eyes wide open.

B'Elanna shook her head. 'Might as well give the kid a break', she thought to herself.

"You know, I'm very surprised that you didn't come in here half unconscious. Not very many people could have taken this kind of pain and not seek treatment immediately, let alone walk for almost 24 hours on it without any pain medicine." He looked up at her curiously. To Blithian standards, she was quite lovely, even with those ridges on her forehead. In fact, they added an exotic air to her whole countenance, and he actually liked it. A lot, in fact, he admitted to himself.

B'Elanna was looking down at him, not having to guess what he was thinking. When he caught her eyes, he deeply blushed and went back to his work with newfound enthusiasm. B'Elanna smiled, thinking that even after being shot, crawling through impossibly small spaces, and numerous other (shall she call it?) tribulations, she was still looking decent enough to earn a blush or two.

"Umm, I think all I have to do now are the stitches, then you're done. Your companion was treated for a slight concussion. He's a few yards away in another curtained area, waiting for you to be done." He busied himself with his supplies as he tried to talk small talk to her. B'Elanna noticed a small glint, and looked over to the young man, and gasped. The stitching needle was impossibly large, looking more like a, what did they call them? Oh ya, she thought with a grimace. A crochet needle. The man was still talking as she stared open mouthed at the needle, gulping. Evidently he didn't notice his patient's discomfort. B'Elanna forced herself to slow down her breathing. 'Ok', she thought, 'Its only for a moments discomfort, then I'll be as good as new. God, why didn't they have the Doctor here? She will never again complain about him or his bedside manner, as long as he patched her up, with barely any pain.'

"Ok, you ready?", the man said as he turned toward her again, needle in hand. B'Elanna closed her eyes and nodded. To get her mind off the needle, she thought more of their situation. She had finally taken the cabzis out if its rather awkward position and had placed it back into her show, which thankfully had been left alone in the changing room along with her other articles of clothing.

"B'Elanna, you ok?", Chakotay asked the rather green looking Klingon.

She opened her eyes, and nodded. "I have a…a slight problem with needles." She didn't know if Chakotay knew this or not, but she really didn't care of he was going to make fun of her or not at the moment.

Chakotay glanced at the needle, and nodded. "I would too, if I were you."

B'Elanna laughed. "Thanks for the note of confidence, Maquis." She glanced down at her thigh. Nine inches already, and atleast another four. The Blithian noticed her looking at his work. "Only a few more minutes, and it'll be all over." B'Elanna nodded and smiled at him.

Chakotay saw the liik on the young man's face, and smiled. So, B'Elanna has a little admirer, huh? Cute. B'Elanna saw his smile and gave him a withering look. "Just sit down on the cot over there. And mind your own business. Got it?", she ordered. He gave her an innocent look, and then laughed as he sat down.

The young Blithian looked up, perplexed by their exchange. These two were by far the most puzzling couple he had ever seen. Too bad the female was taken, he thought to himself.

B'Elanna looked up and saw two new guards coming towards them. "Looks as if our guides are ready to take us to the engineering deck." She sighed and looked at Chakotay. The young medic had finished up with her leg and was putting his things away, so she and Chakotay had a moment of privacy. "You ready for this?", she asked. She was, of course, nervous about this whole thing, but she was sure that Chakotay was calm and therefore a buoy for her to hang on to.

Chakotay gave her a reassuring smile. "We can do it. Of course it won't go entirely as we planned, but hey, we were in the Maquis together. And how many times did we get away from the Cardassians and Star Fleet? This will be a piece of cake compared to them, believe me." He gave her a wink as the guards came to their sides, ordering them to their feet. "We may just be able to steal this ship right out from under their noses, what with my stealthy Indian feet and your Klingon fierceness."

B'Elanna snorted her reply, but gave him a grin as the guards led them out the doors and into the hall.

1845 ZULU

Blithian Cargo Ship

Engineering Deck

B'Elanna wiped the sweat off her forehead with her arm, and huffed a sigh. They had maybe five or ten more minutes of work left, and then they could set their watches to about two hours before the engines would heat up and break down. B'Elanna even thought that it may just take an hour and a half, after seeing the poor condition the engine was in.

"Ok, are you almost done, Lieutenant?", Chakotay asked as he looked behind himself to see of the guards were paying them any attention. Fortunately, they appeared to be in the middle of some kind of game, and by the looks of the younger one, the older one was winning by a long shot.

"Just about." After some more huffing and puffing, B'Elanna leaned back on her heels and breathed a sigh. "All done." She smiled at Chakotay, hoping to talk to him before the guards noticed they were done. They weren't so lucky.

After the guards reported to Mortimer that everything was in place, they were lead to a much nicer apartment, with a bathroom, B'Elanna noticed with a sigh of relief. Since bathrooms had to have its air circulated more than that of a regular room, that usually meant that it had a bigger air vent, which in this case, it did. B'Elanna estimated that though it may be a tight squeeze, she and Chakotay would be able to fit into it.

"You will be given food in two hours. The Captain would like you to join him for this meal. There are clothes in the closets for both of you. As I said, you have two hours to get ready." The guard turned on his foot and went out with his companion, locking the doors after himself.

Chakotay turned to B'Elanna and waggled his eyebrows. "What do you say we pull a Bruce Willis and crawl our way outta here?".

B'Elanna watched him head toward the bathroom and couldn't help wondering who Bruce Willis was. She shrugged her shoulders and headed after him, ready to get started. Chakotay had already started unscrewing the grill off the vent, and motioned her toward him.

"Ok, you first, Torres. I'll come after you, but you're in charge of guiding us through here. Can you do that?", he asked.

She nodded. She was pretty sure she could do it, and she even had a good idea where they could find some kind of communication system around here. The Blithians hadn't been too cautious when it came to leading them through the ship. She figured that they would go the opposite direction the engineering bay was in, and they would hit gold. She hoped.

Chakotay knelt on one knee, then motioned her forward with his head. "Lets get going before they come back", he said.

B'Elanna nodded and stepped on leg, grasping the ledges with her hands. She got all the way to about mid shoulder when she started to slide back out. She quickly scrambled the rest of the way through and went about 10 feet and stopped as she waited for Chakotay. She heard some grunts, and then he was right behind her, blocking the light from the bathroom. She started crawling, having a hard time because the space was so tight. She could only imagine how Chakotay felt at the moment. "Ok, I think we should take the next right that comes up, and I'm hoping that will lead us to what we need", she whispered to Chakotay. She heard him mumble a reply, and continued on down. She noticed a ledge about 15 feet ahead, and hoped it was a tunnel that lead to the right. She scrambled the rest of the way and discovered to her disappointment that it wasn't such a thing. But when she looked closer, she found that it was small door which may lead to something like a Jeffries tube, and that would be better than another vent to clamber through. She motioned to Chakotay to wait a minute, and then slid the door open. Sure enough, it opened up to a set of stairs. She gave Chakotay a thumbs up sign and then struggled out to the ladder. As soon as Chakotay was on the ladder beneath her, she started the long climb up. Three minutes later B'Elanna stopped at an access door. Hoping that this was the floor they would need, she started fiddling with the buttons on the panel. After about thirty seconds, the door silently whished open to reveal a stark hallway. B'Elanna looked both ways, and as soon as she was convinced the coast was clear, she clambered out of the cramped space into the hallway. While Chakotay was climbing out, she took a look around, trying to see if there were any signs or maps that would indicate where they were.

"Where are we?", Chakotay whispered close to her ear.

She shrugged, and motioned to her left, toward a doorway with writing on it. They tiptoed over to it, careful not to make any sound. Just as they reached it, the doors slid open. Chakotay and B'Elanna pressed themselves against the wall, but nobody exited the room.

"Maybe it's a motion detector", B'Elanna offered. Chakotay nodded, still looking toward the room. "On that case", he said, "Then we had better get our butts moving. They both sprinted toward the door, slipping through it soundlessly. As soon as they both were in, the doors slid shut.

B'Elanna looked further in the room, and almost started jumping up and down. The room had all kinds of control panels in it. There had to be some kind of hailing system of some sort in here. She rushed over and started to look them over. Right there, her mind exclaimed. The blue and red buttons were lit up, ready for nimble fingers to give them commands. "Chakotay, over here", she urged. He came up beside her and placed his arm around her shoulders.

"We did it, B'Elanna. Both of us." He squeezed her arm and let go. "Lets send Voyager a message, and then we can go back to our room and wait for Mortimer. Is there any way you can send it without alerting anybody else?", he asked.

B'Elanna nodded her head. "I think so." She started buttons, and after about three minutes, she looked up at Chakotay. "All we need to do now is send it." He looked in her eyes and nodded. "Then lets do it", he whispered. B'Elanna looked back down to the buttons, and pushed one. "And away its off", she murmured.

Chakotay smiled at her. "Well, I guess our little journey is hopefully gonna end pretty soon. As soon as the shop is dead in space, we can just wait for Voyager to come and get us. We had better head back." He motioned toward the small door. B'Elanna gave him a small smile. "Yes, lets do", she said.

They both slipped back into the tube again and started to make their way down. "So what do you say having a drink as soon as we're back on Voyager?", Chakotay asked, smiling up at her. "I bet that when everybody hears about some of the stuff we've-"

Before Chakotay could finish, they were thrown off the ladder into the wall. B'Elanna let out a surprised yelp, and caught a rung before she fell too far. Chakotay grabbed her foot, and as soon as he was balanced, he let go after gripping the ladder.

"What in the world-".

Before she could finish, the ship lurched again, even more violently. "Hurry, hold on and climb back up!", B'Elanna yelled. She got up to the small door and yanked it open, scrambling inside. She turned around and all but yanked Chakotay along beside her. "I didn't think the engines would have that effect", Chakotay huffed.

B'Elanna shook her head. "It wasn't the engines. It couldn't have been. I know this sounds crazy, but it sounded like-".

Another powerful tremor ran through the ship, throwing them both down to the floor. As soon as the floor was steady again, they both got to their feet and ran to the panels. B'Elanna's hands were flying over the buttons, desperately trying to find out what was going on. She finally got an image, and put it on the screen. What they saw was the last thing they ever expected.

"Kazons?! How in the world did they find their way clear over here, this far?", Chakotay demanded. B'Elanna could only shake her head numbly. "I-I have no idea."

Just then an image came over the screen. The ship was hailing them, and the bridge had answered the hail. But it wasn't a Kazon that was on the screen. It was some other kind of alien they had never seen before.

"Blithian cargo ship, put down your shields and power down your weapons. Prepare to be boarded." The face that said this was extremely harsh, its voice equally so. If cruelty had a visage, B'Elanna was sure it looked like this.

"What now? Do we just wait for them?", B'Elanna asked. Chakotay stared hard at the screen, then made up his mind.

"We'll tell them the truth. That we were taken hostage against our will, and that if they would take us back to Voyager, we would compensate them." He looked around, trying to see if there were any weapons. "but we should definitely arm ourselves, just to be safe."

B'Elanna nodded. She started looking with Chakotay, looking under chairs and along the wall. He tiny weapon could of course defend against 2, maybe 3 attackers, but there was no way she could stave off a whole shipload.

Chakotay waved B'Elanna over to a box he had just found on the far side of the room. "Its locked, so maybe that means it has weapons in here. Lets hope. Ok, we need to unlock it and see whats inside. Any ideas?" Chakotay started pressing buttons on the lock pad, but to no avail.

"Wait a minute", B'Elanna said. She looked around the room, trying to find a thin piece of metal. After looking everywhere, she spotted what looked like a broken piece of paneling. She hurriedly picked it up and rushed back to Chakotay. Just as she reached him, the ship bucked again, throwing them both to their feet. B'Elanna grabbed a chair and half pulled herself up. She looked around and saw Chakotay on the ground, holding his hand to his bloody forehead. She crawled over to him, ignoring the screaming pain in her thigh.

"Chakotay, are you ok?", she asked as soon as she reached him. He didn't answer her, so she pulled his hand away from his head to reveal yet another bloody gash on his forehead, but this one far worse than the older one. She took a breathe, then started to clean the blood off with her sleeve. "It'll be fine, Chakotay. Just you see. But we need to get out of here. Do you hear me?", she asked even more urgently. She could hear screaming coming from what seemed everywhere around them. They either needed to hide or-

The door suddenly opened with a harsh grating sound. B'Elanna whipped her head around, trying to see the immediate threat. What she saw dashed all their hopes to pieces.

Four aliens from the attacking ship stalked into the room, huge guns in hand. They didn't immediately see Chakotay or B'Elanna, so she quietly pushed Chakotay into a small alcove. She quickly shielded him with her body, then waited.

The aliens whispered among themselves and, thanks to the Universal Translater in her ear, B'Elanna could hear what they were saying.

"There were life signs in this room. I saw it myself." The voice was even harsher in life, if that was at all possible. She got a closer look at them and knew that there was no way she could fight these aliens hand to hand. They were each easily 7 feet tall, with braid, muscular bodies.

"Then I guess you were wrong, incompetent fool. We'll just blow up the ship after we're done getting all the prisoners together, then there won't be room for such an error."

B'Elanna bit her lip. If they were going to blow the ship up after they took all the crew off, then there was no way for her and Chakotay to live. They wouldn't be able to run off with it as soon as the aliens were on to their own ship. What if it was damaged? They certainly didn't have the luxury of having the time to fix it, or even to see what needed to be repaired. She made a split second decision, and she hoped with all her heart that it was the wisest one.

She climbed out of her hiding place, careful to not hurt the now unconscious Chakotay. When she scraped her shoe against the floor, the four aliens whipped about to face her.

"Hands up! Now!", one guttural voice demanded. All four had their weapons trained on her. Not one, she noticed, even wavered.

"My name is B'Elanna Torres. Me and my companion were taken hostage and placed on this ship." She saw one advance toward her, and she backed up, hands above her head. "If you would take us back to our ship, we would-" Before she could finish, the advancing alien brutally smashed her jaw with his weapon. She felt herself literally lift off her feet and hit the wall behind her. She lay there, stunned. She could feel blood trickle from the corner of her mouth down her cheek. She felt hands grasp the front of her uniform and lift her to her feet. She opened her eyes and found herself face to face with the alien that had struck her.

"Don't speak unless you are spoken to", he said, breath foul. B'Elanna nodded, and saw the other aliens poke Chakotay with the end of their guns. She bent her head, hoping she looked subservient. "My companion is fine. He just needs help up, is all." She held her breath, expecting another attack. But she had no choice. She had to tell them that Chakotay was fine, that he could walk. If she didn't, the aliens could easily shoot him just because he was an inconvenience.

After 5 seconds, she lifted her eyes and saw the alien give her a harsh glare, then commanded his companions to leave Chakotay alone.

She let out her breath and stumbled when the alien pushed her toward Chakotay. "If you can carry him to the ship, then he will live. Now go."

She glanced back at the alien and nodded. She pushed through the other aliens, giving them each a hard stare, then knelt down to Chakotay. "Do you hear me?", she asked.

Chakotay opened his eyes and nodded. "B'Elanna, what happened?" He tried to lift himself up, but fell back again with a moan.

"Just sit back. When you passed out, these guys walked through the door. Now they say that if I can carry you, they'll let us live." She put her arms under his shoulders and legs and lifted him up. She turned around to the aliens to show them that she could do this. The head alien nodded and waved her through the door, and fell in step behind her.

Chakotay looked up at her. "What happened at your face?", he asked as he touched the bruise forming on her jaw.

B'Elanna gave a bitter laugh. " I was trying to tell them that we were here against our will. It seems that our new captors don't like prisoners who can speak. Cold cocked me a stiff one, even lifted me up off my feet and into the wall", she whispered. She shifted Chakotay's weight, lessening the stress on her shoulder. "I'm thinking that you need to stop eating so much of Neelix's food. I've had to haul your sorry rear end all over the place since we've left Voyager, and believe me, its not fun. Or easy on the arms." She shifted his weight again, making Chakotay grimace.

"Sorry, but you have to admit, you're not that tiny either, Torres."

She smiled and gave him a grin. "Watch it or I'll drop you and say that I can't carry you anymore. Maybe then you'll turn into a bird and fly away."

"Stop and stand by the wall." B'Elanna stopped opposite the door and waited. The head guard opened the door, revealing a passageway that connected the two ships. "Go."

B'Elanna shifted Chakotay's weight again. Sure, she was half Klingon and had incredible strength, but there was only so much your body could take. After being shot, tackled, and punched numerous times in the last 32 hours or so, her body was screaming for rest, ready to just let-up and call it a day.

She looked down the passageway, then at the guard. She could tell he knew that she was having a hard time, and when he gave her a malicious grin, she also knew that he was expecting her to either give up or break down. She squared her shoulders and gave him the nastiest glare she could muster at the moment, not caring that he had the ability to strike her yet again. There was no way she was going to fail when she and Chakotay had gotten this far. She entered the passageway, sweat pouring down her face, muscles screaming their protest. 'B'Elanna Torres, strong and stubborn. B'Elanna Torres, strong and stubborn.' It became a mantra to her, saying it over and over again in her head, until she found herself face to face with another door, and stood to the side of it, waiting for the guard to open it up.

The guard came up to her, face to face. "You can put your companion down now." He stepped to the door and pressed a few buttons on the pad, and it opened it up.

B'Elanna released Chakotay, relieving the strain on her arms, and wiped the sweat off her brow with her sleeve. Chakotay rubbed her back and gave her an encouraging smile. She smiled back and raised her eyebrows, shaking her head, not believing that she had done it.

The guard waved them in, and they followed him as they stepped into what looked like another cargo bay. He motioned them to hold out their hands and put restraints on each of the other's wrists, connecting them. "You are now the property of the Nasgars. You will obey us in everything. You no longer have any freedoms or rights. You are slaves, and will work for the good of the mother planet." He gave them each a severe glower, making his point known. "You will be transported to a workstation and will stay there until you have worked your value." At that, he turned on his feet and walked out of the room, his fellow guards trailing after him.

B'Elanna sat down, dragging Chakotay after with her. She wiped her face again with her sleeve, and gave a heavy sigh. "So that's it. We didn't even have a chance. Now we're the property of… what was it? Nagars?"

"Nasgars.", Chakotay corrected. He too gave a sigh. "Well, we still have chances ahead of us, but right now I suggest we check our injuries and try to rest. Anything wrong with you?"

B'Elanna shook her head. "Just my jaw is killing me, and my leg is on fire. Oh, and ya, we're both gonna die on some workstation. Probably like a concentration camp the Nasgars are running. But other that than that, I'm peachy."

Chakotay nodded. "I may have a concussion, but other than the last thing you mentioned, I'm doing pretty good, considering. Ok, lets lie down." He started to lie down, but B'Elanna held her ground.

"What about your head injury? I know that we're both gonna die pretty soon probably, but I'm not going to let you out so early, or easily. We need to keep you up, just in case. How about if we talk about the Doctor's slide show he's been bragging about for the last week. Do you know what its about?"

Chakotay sighed. He would much rather go to sleep, but B'Elanna was right. But he certainly didn't want to talk about the Doctor's slide show. "Lets just talk about better times. You know, even before we joined the Maquis." He turned his head toward B'Elanna. You or me go first?"

B'Elanna stared hard at the floor. She didn't really like talking about her past. She would rather forget about most of it, let alone sharing it with other people. "You go first. You might fall asleep when I'm telling about my life." She glanced at her hands, and noticed a small cut she got when she was reconfiguring the engines for Mortimer. Before when they had a fighting chance. And that's when it hit her. She turned to Chakotay and asked, "What happened to Mortimer and the other crew? They mentioned blowing the Blithian ship up after they got all the crew off, so they have to be around here somewhere."

Chakotay looked around the small room. "My best bet is that they're in real holding cells. Maybe there wasn't enough room for us, so they stuck us in here."

B'Elanna nodded. "Good idea. So that means that atleast we know there are some people who would no doubt be willing to help get away from the Nasgars. Maybe we actually have a fighting chance."

They both heard a bitter laugh coming from the shadows across the room. "Better think again. The Nasgars are notorious for their pirating and slave labor. They're experts at this kind of thing. You never hear from past captives because they always die. There have never been any escapes."

B'Elanna squinted into the shadows. She recognized the voice, but couldn't be certain if she was right.

"Who are you?", Chakotay asked, sitting up by B'Elanna now.

They saw the figure scoot to the light. A familiar face came into view. B'Elanna was the first to talk. "You're the one that stitched up my leg." At the young man's nod, she asked, "Whats your name?"

"Taberoutingher." He laughed at the looks on their faces. "But my friends call me Taber. Considering how we're all going to die in a short time, you guys can call me Taber."

B'Elanna nodded. "I'm B'Elanna, and this is Chakotay." She scooted a bit closer. "Tell us more about the Nasgars."

Taber nodded and continued. "Well, they don't have the best reputation when it comes to trading with them. Theres always the possibility that they'll take you and your crew prisoners. As you no doubt saw, they're huge. Known for their strength and merciless fighting matches. Though they are cruel, they do have some sense of honor, or at least I've heard they do." He paused and gave a heavy sigh. "And last but not least, they're known for their so-called workstations. They kidnap whole crews and force them to work in them, mostly dealing with radioactive material. As you probably guessed, they need to restock their labor force quite often."

Chakotay nodded, thinking. "So no one has ever escaped?"

Taber shook his head. "Never."

"Well, how long do you think we have before we're transported to the workstation?"

Taber thought for a moment. "Well, it'll probably be at least 8 hours. I was shocked when I found out that they were so far away from their planet. Maybe they went on a hunting trip for laborers."

B'Elanna nodded her head. "Whats their technology like?"

"Well, they're pretty advanced, but I wouldn't say its their technology." At the confused looks he got, he continued. "They steal other people's ships and study that technology and add it to theirs. They have no real talent when it comes to studying for different ways to expand their world. They rely on other people's hard work", he said bitterly.

"That's probably why they had a Kazon ship", B'Elanna told Chakotay.

He nodded, "Yep, probably right." He looked over to Taber. "Are you tied to something over there, or can you join us?"

Taber smiled and got up. "Thought you'd never ask." He walked over and sat by B'Elanna, giving her an adoring smile.

B'Elanna smiled back, poking Chakotay in the arm, knowing that he had a big grin on his face. "Umm, can you look at Chakotay and see if he has a head injury or not?"

Taber nodded and scooted over to Chakotay. After examining him for about two minutes, he shook his head. "I don't think so, but if he does, its only a slight concussion. But if you want to sleep, one of us is going to have to take turns waking you up every hour or so."

Chakotay nodded. "Well, I think that the best thing to do for all of us is try to get some rest before we get to the workstation. But I think it would be wise to have a lookout. Just in case something unexpected comes up." He gave them each a winning smile. "And since I have such a delicate injury, which one of you would like to take the first watch?"

B'Elanna rolled her eyes. "Man, one of these days that head of yours is going to deflate. I'll go ahead and take the first one."

Taber looked at her. "Oh, I can do it. You look more worn out than I am, so you need to get some rest."

B'Elanna smiled at him and stole a quick glance at Chakotay. "Why thank you. I think I'm gonna take you up on that offer."

Chakotay rolled his eyes. "Just wake B'Elanna up when you get tired, and then wake me up real fast." He plunked down, dragging a surprised B'Elanna with him.

She poked him in the ribs before turning to Taber. "By the way, why are you in here with us and not with your fellow crewmembers?"

Taber gave her a leveled stare, and then answered her. "They refused to be in the same cell as me. You see, I'm a convicted murderer."


End file.
